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CIHM/ICMH 

Microfiche 

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Collection  de 
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Canadian  Institute  for  Historical  Microreproductions  /  Institut  Canadian  de  microreproductions  historiques 


Technical  and  Bibliographic  Notes/Notes  techniques  et  bibliographiques 


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D 


D 


D 


Coloured  covers/ 
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I      I    Covers  damaged/ 


Couverture  endommagde 

Covers  restored  and/or  laminated/ 
Couverture  restaurde  et/ou  peliicul^e 


I      I    Cover  title  missing/ 


Le  titre  de  couverture  manque 

Coloured  maps/ 

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Pages  de  couleur 

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I  I  Pages  damaged/ 

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r  I  Showthrough/ 

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obtenir  la  meilleure  image  possible. 


Thisi 
Cede 

10X 

tern 
>cum 

s  filr 
ent  e 

ned  i 
stfil 

It  the 
md  a 

14X 

1  red  I 
u  tau 

ictioi 
x  de 

1  rati 
r6du 

o  ch( 
ction 

18X 

jckec 
indi( 

i  beU 
:|u6  c 

jw/ 
i-dessous 

22X 

26X 

30X 

J 

1 

12X                              16X                             20X                              24X                             28X                             32X 

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shall  contain  the  symbol  •— *>  (meaning  "CON- 
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L'exemplaire  film*  fut  reproduit  grAce  A  la 
ginArosit*  de: 

Library  Division 

Provincial  Archives  of  British  Columbia 

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de  la  nettetA  de  l'exemplaire  filmi,  et  en 
conformity  avec  les  conditions  du  contrat  da 
filmage. 

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derniire  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impression  ou  d'illustration,  soit  par  le  second 
plat,  selon  le  cas.  Tous  les  autres  exemplaires 
originaux  sont  film^s  en  commen^ant  par  la 
premiere  page  qui  comporte  une  empreinte 
d'impressio/1  ou  d'illustration  et  en  terminant  par 
la  dernidre  page  qui  compoite  une  telle 
empreinte. 

Un  des  symboles  suivants  apparaitra  sur  la 
dernidre  image  de  cheque  microfiche,  selon  le 
cas:  le  symbole  — ►  signifie  "A  SUIVRE",  le 
symbole  V  signifie  "FIN". 

Les  cartes,  planches,  tableaux,  etc.,  peuvent  dtre 
film^s  d  des  taux  de  rMuction  diffirents. 
Lorsque  le  document  est  trop  grand  pour  dtre 
reproduit  en  un  seul  cliche,  il  est  film«  A  partir 
de  Tangle  sup^rieur  gauche,  de  gauche  A  droite, 
et  de  haut  en  bas,  en  prenant  le  nombre 
d'images  n^cessaire.  Les  diagrammes  suivants 
illustrent  la  m^thode. 


1 

2 

3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

ADDRESS 


ON 


THE  nori:hwesi\ 


HEFORE  THE 


%mtmm  itflgnrplitiil  una  misiml  Somlj), 


DKI.IVIiltED  AT  NEW  VOItK,  DKJKMBEK  2,  135s, 


V.  V 


ISAAC  I.  STEVENS. 


WASHINGTON: 

•J  .    S,    OlDEON,    PRINTER. 
1858, 


S  8  4A- 


ADDRESS. 


Mr.  ['resident  and  GentlExMen  of  the 

American  Geographical  and  Statistical  Society: 

Ladies  and  Gentlemen  :    The  northwest  portion  of  the 

American  Continent  has  of  late,  and  is  now,  attracting 

Touch  attention.     It  lias  hitherto,  except  a  portion  of  our 

own  domain,  been  considered  only  a  great  hunting  field, 

rich  in  furs,  and  capable  of  furnishing  wealth  and  influence 

to  a  trading  establishment.     The  history  of  this  domain, 

though  meagre,  is  interesting.     The  coast  was  explored 

in  the  latter  part  of  the  last  century  by  American,  English 

and  Spanish  navigators.   A  Boston  shipmaster  gave  name 

to  the  Columbia  river  and  to  Gray's  harbor,  between  that 

point  and  Cape  Flattery.    A  Spanish  navigator  gave  name 

to  the  Straits  de  Fuca,  and  other  points  in  the  vicinity; 

and  British  navigators  gave  name  to  Vancover's  island, 

and  to  other  points  of  the  adjacent  waters  and  coasts. 

Although  two  centuries  since  the  Jesuit  missionaries 
])enetrated  to  the  Northwest  from  the  Mississippi,  it  was 
not  till  towards  the  close  of  the  last  century  that  the  North- 
west Company  and  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company  pushed  their 
explorations  to  the  frozen  ocean  and  to  the  Pacific,  in  about 
]^arallel  52. 

About  this  time  they  established  posts  over  all  this  ex- 
tensive country.  The  explorations  of  Lewis  and  Clark  at 
an  early  part  of  the  present  century,  made  known  to  us  the 
two  great  rivers  across  the  continent—the  Missouri  and  the 
Columbia— and  the  general  cliaracter  of  tlie  country.    They 


±z^ij^<j 


4 


wo'C  soon  followed  by  the  American  trappery  and  traders, 
who  planted  establishments  to,  and  beyond,  the  Rocky 
mountains. 

The  efforts  of  John  Jacob  Astor  to  found  a  great  trading 
establishment  on  the  OoUunbia,  and  to  make  tributary  to 
it  the  whole  western  slope,  by  a  system  of  posts,  through 
misfortunes  of  various  kinds,  failed,  and  the  whole  of  that 
country,  as  well  as  the  country  northward  to  Hudson's  bay, 
and  stretching  from  the  Pacific  to  the  great  lakes,  came 
under  the  control  of  i\  foreign  company.  Thus,  so  far  as 
concerned  the  agencies  at  work  to  develop  the  country, 
the  American  people  had  control  simply  of  the  portion 
east  of  the  Rocky  mountains,  and  another  jurisdiction, 
acting  through  a  company  whose  interest  it  was  to  keep 
the  country  a  desert,  to  keep  it  in  a  condition  in  which  it 
would  be  remunerative  in  its  furs,  had  control  of  the  entire 
remaining  portion  of  that  country. 

I  will  in  this  connection  refer  to  the  treaty  of  1846,  by 
which  a  line  was  established  between  the  two  countries, 
and  to  a  remark  made  about,  or  previous  to,  that  time  in 
the  British  Parliament,  to  the  effect  that  so  great  was  the 
distance  iiom  the  American  settlements  to  the  Pacific,  and 
so  serious  were  the  difficulties  to  be  encountered,  that  it  was 
idle  and  prei)osterous  to  suppose  the  American  States  could 
colonize  the  Pacific  coast.  At  the  very  time  this  confident 
assertion  was  being  made,  our  emigrant  wagons  were  mov- 
ing over  those  mountains,  and  that  same  fall  American 
citizens  had  carved  out  their  homes  on  the  shores  of  the 
Pacific  ocean,  and  raised  above  them  the  stars  and  stripes 
of  their  country's  power.  The  fact  thereby  became  estab- 
lished, that  that  western  coast  was  ours  by  the  natural  pro- 
cess of  colonization,  and  that  American  genius  and  enter- 
prise could  scale  the  Rocky  mountains  and  overcome  every 
difficulty  lying  between  the  valley  of  the  Mississippi  and 
the  Western  ocean.  From  that  time  the  \vay  was  thronged 
with  the  emigrant  wagons  of  our  people,  who  went  on  the 


.\s 


long  (liwtaiit  Journey  with  their  women  and  tlieii'  ciiildren. 
From  that  time  did  that  country  become  known  to  us  as  a 
civilized  community;  as  a  community  of  families;  as  a  com- 
munity which  would  have  a  jc^rcat  part  yet  to  ])lay  in  the 
destinies  of  the  country  and  of  the  worhl. 

Time  rolled  on;  California  was  acquired,  and  its  immense 
mineral  riches  hecame  known.  Oregon,  whicli  had  been 
healthfully  and  rapidly  settling,  became  stationai'y .  Many 
of  her  people  went  to  California  to  dig  for  gohl.  Emigra- 
tion was  turned  overland  to  California,  and  she  l)ecamc  a 
great  centre  of  attraction,  not  only  to  the  people  of  tlie 
States,  but  to  the  people  of  other  countries.  This  station- 
ary condition  of  Oregon,  however,  continued  but  for  two 
or  three  years,  and  then  she  greatly  increased  in  ])opula- 
tion.  Gold  was  found  in  Southern  Oregon,  and  largo  num- 
bers of  miners  found  remunerative  employment  there.  The 
northern  portion  of  Oregon  was  organized  into  a  separate 
Territory,  the  Territory  of  Washington. 

Within  the  last  four  or  five  years  rumors  had  spread 
abroad  that  gold  was  to  be  found  in  Washington  and  in 
the  British  possessions  to  the  north.  The  country  was 
more  or  less  2>'>'ospected  in  each  year,  and  this  year  we  find 
its  mineral  wealth  is  attracting  the  attention  of  the  civil- 
ized world.  We  find  that  both  in  AVashington  and  in 
British  Columbia,  facts  exist,  which  establish  the  extent 
and  richness  of  their  gold  diggings. 

This  seems  therefore  to  be  an  opportune  moment  for 
presenting  in  a  careful  and  deliberate  manner  tlie  geog- 
raphy, resources,  and  ultimate  development  of  that  entire 
region. 

This  is  the  object  which  I  propose  by  my  address  of  this 
evening.  I  shall  endeavor  to  do  this  with  all  the  dis- 
passionate judgment  that  I  can  command.  My  pur]iose  is 
not  as  the  partisan,  to  set  forth  the  advantages  of  a  par- 
ticular section  of  country,  but  to  present  that  section  fairly 
and  candidly,  both  in  its  relation  to  the  countries  north 


« 


and  soulli,  and  the  grout  conni't'tioiis  ou.st  tiiid  west.  T«» 
fiicilitatc  the  investigation  of  this  wliolc  subject,  I  have 
liad  ])roparcd  a  map  on  a  largo  scale,  giving  the  entire 
northern  portion  of  the  continent  from  tlie  parallel  of  San 
Francisco  and  Washington  city  to  Hudson's  bay.  On  this 
map  1  liave  exhibited  the  mountain  ranges,  the  great  navi- 
gable streams,  the  practicable  passes  and  the  principal 
prairie  regions.  Looking  on  that  map,  your  attention  is 
arrested  first  by  the  great  mountain  cliain  from  which  flow 
waters  to  either  ocean.  Following  those  waters,  you  ol)- 
serve  great  rivers  having  long,  distant  courses  before  they 
reach  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  Hudson's  bay,  the  Frozen  ocean, 
and  the  Pacific  ocean.  Observe  especially  those  two  great 
i-ivers,  the  Missouri  and  the  Columbia;  follow  them  up  to 
tlieir  upper  tributaries,  and  you  will  find  that  they  inter- 
lock in  the  very  heart  of  the  Rocky  mountains.  You  will 
find  that  from  the  head  of  steamboat  navigation  of  the 
one  river,  to  the  head  of  steamboat  navigation  on  the  other, 
the  distance  is  but  inconsiderable  compared  with  the  entire 
distance  across  the  continent.  There  is  Fort  Benton,  2,415 
miles  nbovc  St.  Louis.  To  this  point  you  can  take  steamers 
seven  ths  in  the  year,  carrying  150  tons  of  freight,  and 
here  at  the  mouth  of  the  Palousc,  on  the  great  southern 
tributary  of  the  Columbia,  Snake  river,  you  come  a,gain 
to  waters  navigable  by  steamers.  The  distance  from  the 
head  of  steamboat  navigation  on  the  Missouri,  to  the  head 
of  steamboat  navigation  on  the  Columbia,  is  but  450 
miles. 

There  arc  other  streams,  second  only  in  importance  to 
the  Missouri.  The  two  branches  of  the  Saskatchawan,  that 
have  their  sources  also  in  the  Rocky  mountains,  north  of 
the  Missouri,  stretch  a  great  distance  eastward  to  Lake 
Winnipeg,  and  find  their  way  northward  into  Hudson's 
bay.  They  connect  also  with  the  main  Columbia  itself, 
affording  transit  for  passengers  and  freight  many  months 
of  the  year:    and  thus   the  Columbia  river  and   the  two 


I)i'iiin;lu's  ol  l,lu;  SiiskjiU-liiUVJin  liiivt'  1-',mii  tin-  !j;ivut  lines  i.l 
travel  of  llio  lliulsoii'.s  iijiy  C()mi)iin\ .  II  is  tlii»ii,i!,li  tliut 
country  tliuy  liuvc  cstablislicMl  their  many  pests.  1  propose 
in  this  connection  sinipjy  to  refer  to  these  streams  geo<5ra])h- 
ically.  In  another  part  of  my  address  I  shall  refer  to  tlieni 
more  as  avenues  of  travel  and  (^f  commerce. 

Tlie  Mississippi  lias  also  its  source  in  this  rc<j;ion,  liii'- 
nishing  with  its  tributaries  a  long  course  of  waters  naviga- 
ble by  steamers,  and  aft'ording  a  very  close  connection  both 
with  Lake  Superior  and  the  Red  river  of  the  north;  and 
the  Red  I'ivei-  of  tlio  north,  flowing  northward,  and  in  a 
direction  opposite  to  that  of  the  Mississippi,  is  also  navi- 
gable within  our  own  borders  several  liundred  miles  for 
steamers,  and  makes  the  connection  between  our  own 
system  of  rivers  and  those  which  flow  into  Lfike  Winnepig 
and  Hudson's  bay. 

J>ut  the  great  feature:  of  the  n(»rthern  portion  of  the 
American  continent  is  the  water  line  of  the  great  lakes, 
which  stretch  more  than  half  way  across  from  the  x\tlanti(; 
to  the  Pacific;  a  fact  of  deep  significance,  when  we  con- 
sider that  vessels,  without  breaking  bulk,  can  pass  thence 
to  Europe,  either  by  the  Canadian  canals  and  the  St. 
Lawrence,  or  by  the  New  York  canals  and  the  Hudson. 

Thus,  then,  we  find  that  the  country  w^hich  wo  are  de- 
scribing, geographically,  is  one  of  great  natural  water 
lines  across  the  continent — the  great  lakes,  the  Missis- 
sippi, the  Red  river  of  the  north,  the  Missouri,  the  two 
branches  of  the  Saskatchawan,  and  the  Columbia.  H' 
we  look  to  the  extreme  southern  portion  of  the  country 
under  consideration,  we  find  it  deficient  in  navigable 
streams.  After  leaving  the  Missouri,  its  tributaries  in  the 
vicinity  of  the  route,  the  Kansas,  the  Platte,  and  the  Run- 
ning Water,  are  unnavigablo  ;  and  we  do  not  come  to  navi- 
gable streams  again  until  we  have  crossed  the  Sierra  Ne- 
vada, and  gone  far  down  into  tbo  valley  of  the  Sacra- 
mento. 


1  uocil  ni»t  wl'i'i  pai'liciilurl;'  \*>  llic  iiuiiiiiliiin  cImiiiM 
whicli  cluiruck'rizu  tliis  CDUiiiry — tlic  Sierra  Nuvadu  <»t' 
California,  and  the  Cascade  Tiionntain.s  of  Orepjon  and 
VvaslMngton,  stretching  far  to  the  nortlnvard  :  the  Rocky 
Mountain  chain,  having  a  vast  extension  in  the  parallel  of 
San  Francinco  and  Washington  city,  and  to  the  northward 
of  the  South  Pass,  and  then  greatly  diminishing  in  hreadtli 
still  i'urthcr  north,  until  it  passes  beyond  the  49tli  parallel 
into  the  British  possessions.  Again,  there  are,  intermediate 
l)etween  these  two  great  chains,  many  subsidiary  chains, 
branching  off  from  the  Sierra  Nevada,  the  Cascades,  and 
the  Kocky  mountains,  which  need  not  be  more  specifically 
referred  to. 

Another  peculiarity  of  the  country  of  the  Missouri  and 
the  Columbia  is,  that  on  the  eastern  slope  thei)rairie  region 
extends  to  the  very  base  of  the  Rocky  mountains.  On  and 
northward  of  the  railroad  line,  from  Fort  Union  along  the 
valley  of  Milk  river  to  Fort  Benton,  there  are  no  upheavals, 
with  the  single  exception  of  the  Three  Buttes,  which  rise  out 
of  the  prairie  just  under  the  49th  parallel,  three  thousand 
feet  high,  about  10(>  miles  eastward  of  the  Rockv  moun- 
tains. 

If  you  look  to  the  Rocky  Mountain  region,  between  the 
40th  and  4yth  parallels,  you  will  find  that  it  is  essentially 
a  country  of  prairies.  West  of  the  Bitter  Root  chain  of 
mountains,  a  great  plain  stretches  to  the  Cascade  moun- 
tains, on  the  west,  and  from  the  48th  to  below  the  46th 
parallel.  This  prairie  region  is,  for  the  most  part,  well 
watered,  well  grassed,  and  fiirnishes  a  large  iiortion  of 
arable  land. 

One  other  feature  remains  to  be  considered  in  the  geo- 
graphy of  this  country,  and  that  is,  the  two  great  ports  on 
this  coast,  San  Francisco  and  Puget's  sound.  San  Fran- 
cisco is  the  great  port  of  California,  and  must  ever  be  a 
great  key-point  of  business  and  commerce.  But  Puget's 
sound  is   admitted   by  all    naval   and   military  <^cntlemen 


I 


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geo- 
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wild  cvtM"  visited  itsNvuttM's,  to  Imthe  most  reiiiarkulil*'  loiid- 
Htoad  on  the  shores  of  any  ocean.  It  has  I, GOO  miU'S  of 
shore-line  and  p;reat  nnmhers  of  land-lockjd,  commodious, 
and  defensible  harbors.  It  can  be  entered  l>y  any  wind,  '"a 
scarcely  ever  obstructed  by  fog,  and  is  the  nearest  point  to 
the  great  ])nrts  of  Asia  of  any  harlior  on  our  wostern 
coast. 

With  this  brief  statement  of  the  geogra])hy,  I  will  now 
consider  the  resources  of  this  country  ;  and  at  this  stage  of 
the  proceeding,  1  am  reminded  of  the  discussions,  which 
have  occurred  witliin  twenty  years,  in  which  tliat  country 
has  been  pronounced  an  inhospitable,  cold,  and  barren 
country,  fit  only  for  Indians,  wild  beasts,  and  huntera. 
Why,  sir,  the  climate  of  Tuget's  sound  i,j  iiilder  than  that 
of  New  York.  You  never  find  ice  on  its  surface,  or  snow 
for  more  than  a  few  days  at  a  time  on  its  shores  ;  and  our 
gooa  friends  in  San  Francisco  have  to  go  north  to  the 
Russian  possessions  to  get  ice.  The  resources  of  Puget's 
sound  and  the  country  on  the  Columbia  river  and  on  the 
Willamette  are  literally  inexhaustible.  The  whole  coun- 
try in  either  territory  west  of  the  Cascade  mountains  has, 
for  the  most  part,  a  fertile  soil,  a  climate  so  mild  through 
the  winter  that  cattle  do  not  require  fodder,  and  seed  can 
be  sown  from  September  to  March  •  and  then  we  have  the 
glorious  summers,  which  enable  us  to  gather  our  cropa 
without  fear  that  they  will  be  injured  by  rain.  The  forests 
on  Puget's  sound  are  a  great  source  of  wealth.  At  this 
time  there  are  on  that  sound  nine  large  steam-mills  and 
many  water-mills  in  operation,  manufacturing  lumber,  and 
several  large  spar  establishments.  Seventy-five  millions 
of  lumber  are  now  manufactured  a  year,  more  than  half 
of  which  is  sent  to  foreign  ports.  Spars  are  not  only  sent 
to  Asia,  the  Sandwich  Islands,  and  Australia,  but  to  the 
navies  of  France  and  England  ;  and  they  have  been  pro- 
nounced by  the  inspectors  to  be  the  best  spars  they  ever 
2 


lu 


saw  ;  and  yet  the  lumber  and  spar  business  is  in  its  in- 
fancy. 

Within  one  mile  of  the  shores  of  Puget's  sound,  there  is 
more  timber  than  can  be  found  on  all  the  tributaries  of  all 
the  waters  of  the  State  of  Maine. 

On  the  coast  there  are  extensive  fisheries  of  cod  and 
halibut,  which  stretch  from  the  mouth  of  the  Columbia 
river  to  beyond  Vancouver's  island. 

This  portion  of  our  coast  also  abounds  in  whales,  and  a 
single  little  tribe  of  Indians^  the  Macaws,  at  Cape  Flat- 
tery, with  their  rude  means,  have  produced  30,000  gal- 
lons of  oil  in  a  single  year. 

On  the  eastern  shores  of  the  sound,  and  on  the  Straits 
de  Fuca,  there  is  coal  which  has  been  pronounced  by  ex- 
perts to  be  adapted  to  river  steamers,  and  the  opinion  has 
been  ventured  that  it  will  answer  for  ocean  steamers, 
though  this  has  not  been  tested. 

The  country  also  abounds  in  water-power  near  to  navi- 
gable waters,  with  all  the  conveniences  to  apply  it  to  manu- 
facturing and  mechanical  purposes  with  economy  and 
success. 

From  the  Cascade  mountains  to  the  Rocky  mountains 
there  is  a  vast  pastoral  and  agricultural  region. 

Looking  on  this  map  I  point  out  to  you  the  Yakima 
country,  admitted  by  all  to  be  a  good  grazing  country. 
In  the  portion  immediately  north  of  the  Columbia,  there 
is  a  single  tract  of  2,000  square  miles  of  arable  land. 

I  will  take  you  to  the  Walla- Walla  valley,  which,  from 
this  height,  (near  AVild-horse  creek,)  presents  as  pleasant 
a  landscape  as  one's  eyes  ever  beheld.  Here  is  this  beautiful 
valley  before  you,  its  streams  lined  with  cottonwood,  the 
neighboring  mountain  spurs  covered  with  pine,  giving  you 
the  most  delightful  picture  of  what  it  Avill  be,  when  it  be- 
comes settled  and  occupied.  You  can  see  in  imagination 
cities  and  villages  along  these  streams,  the  village  school 
and  the  chiirch-spiro.     Nearly  the  whole  of  this  country. 


1 


11 


between  these  mountains  and  Snake  river,  is  an  arable 
country,  and  nearly  one  half  of  it  is  adapted  to  small  farms. 
This  valley,  or  rather  re-entering  of  Snake  river,  is  the 
great  key  of  our  interior,  and  can  subsist  a  farming  popu- 
lation of  100,000  souls. 

The  country  west  of  the  Bitter  Root,  and  north  of  Snake 
river,  andtiience  extending  westward  nearly  to  the  meridian, 
passing  through  the  mouth  of  the  Palouse,  has  a  fertile 
soil,  adapted  to  wheat,  cereals,  and  vegetables.  As  regards 
the  portion  west  of  this  meridian,  it  is  somewhat  affected 
by  drought,  and  is  more  of  a  grazing  than  an  agricultural 
country.  On  the  line  of  the  Columbia,  on  the  shores  of 
many  of  the  streams  and  lakes,  and  in  many  intervening 
swales  and  valleys,  tracts  will  be  found  where  there  is 
land  enough  to  supply  the  grazing  population,  which  that 
country  is  able  to  support. 

The  country  north  of  the  Spokane,  and  thence  to  the 
49th  parallel,  is  wooded,  and  a  very  considerable  portion 
of  it  is  arable.  The  Bitter  Root  mountains  are  covered 
with  heavy  timber — pine  and  fir,  and  larch  and  cedar.  I 
do  not  wish  to  be  thought  to  speak  as  a  sanguine  man, 
when  I  dwell  on  this  country  between  the  Bitter  Root  and 
the  Rocky  mountains,  known  as  the  Flathead  country. 
If  you  look  to  the  isothermal  lines  which  are  drawn  on 
this  map,  you  will  see  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  con- 
dition of  the  temperature  to  prevent  the  raising  of  crops. 
But  we  have  the  practical  experience  of  the  few  settlers, 
and  of  the  Jesuit  missionaries  in  that  country,  to  estab- 
lish the  fact  both  of  the  certainty  and  of  the  goodness 
of  the  crops.  I  estimate  that  in  the  Flathead  country, 
and  along  the  eastern  slopes  of  the  Rocky  mountains, 
the  amouiit  of  arable  land  is  at  least  one-third  of  the 
whole,  and  that  it  will  be  found  to  exceed  12,000  square 
miles.  The  country  from  the  Rocky  mountains  to  the 
great  rivers  running  to  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  and  Hud- 
son's bay — I  refer  to  the  country  stretching  to  the  great 


m 


12 


r  1 


! 


I   I 


1: 


lakes,  the  Upper  Mississippi,  tind  Lake  Winnipeg,  and 
watered  by  the  Upper  Missouri  and  its  tributaries,  by  tlje 
two  branches  of  the  Saskatchawan  and  the  Red  river  of  the 
north — is  adapted  for  the  most  part  to  settlement  and 
civilization.  It  is  not  simply  a  grazing  country,  but  all 
through  it  are  large  bodies  of  arable  land, that  entitle  it  to 
the  distinction  of  being  considered  an  agricultural  country. 

In  my  judgment,  the  time  will  come  when  tliere  will  be 
agricultural  settlements  throughout  the  whole  extent  of 
this  country,  from  the  Mississippi  to  the  shores  of  the 
Pacific,  simply  excepting  limited  extents  of  country  along 
the  higher  part  of  the  mountain  chains,  and  in  some  of 
the  prairie  regions,  to  be  referred  to  more  particularly 
hereafter.  As  illustrative  of  the  capacity  of  this  country, 
I  beg  to  refer  to  a  few  facts.  The  Indians  of  Washington 
Territory  and  Oregon,  east  of  the  Cascade  mountains,  are 
rich  in  horses  and  cattle,  the  former  of  which  have  been 
introduced  within  a  hundred,  and  the  latter  within  thirty 
years.  Their  wealth  perhaps  is  not  equalled  by  any 
civilized  community  on  this  continent.  Indians  among 
those  tribes  own  from  1,000  to  4,000  head  of  horses  and 
cattle  each.  The  Spokanes  and  Flathead  nation  have 
many  horses  and  cattle,  which  range  the  winter  long 
without  fodder,  and,  as  I  know  from  personal  observation, 
they  do  not  shrink  away  but  very  little  in  flesh.  Never 
have  I  seen  fatter  beef  than  the  Indian  cattle,  in  the  Walla- 
Walla,  in  January.  At  Fort  Benton  and  Fort  Union, 
where  tliere  are  large  numbers  of  horses  and  cattle,  they 
retain  their  flesh  all  winter  without  fodder. 

We  now  come  to  the  development  of  this  great  portion  of 
our  country,  which  I  shall  consider  both  as  regards  the 
agencies  actually  at  work  now  to  develop  the  region,  and 
the  measures  which  should  be  adopted  looking  to  the  ad- 
vancement and  prosperity  of  the  whole  country.  Much 
has  been  already  done.  The  country  has  been  explored  by 
order  of  the  government,      A  commencement   has   been 


aiiu 


they 


I 


1 


made  in  surveying  the  public  lands.  Some  progress  has 
been  made  in  negotiating  treaties  with  the  Indian  tribes, 
and  those  same  Indian  tribes  have  recently  been  shown  a 
memorable  instance  of  the  power  and  the  determination  of 
the  government,  to  protect  the  lives  of  its  citizens.  The 
surveys  liave  enabled  me  to  speak  with  certainty  of  the 
resources  of  the  country,  and  they  will  enable  me  to  sj)eak 
with  some  confidence  as  to  other  measures  which  ought  to 
be  undertaken  to  develop  that  country,  looking  always  to 
the  honor  and  renown  of  all  these  United  States. 

The  discovery  of  gold  in  British  Columbia  has  developed . 
on  the  part  of  the  British  people,  an  earnest  persistent  de- 
termination to  establish  communications  across  the  conti- 
nent to  bind  into  one  union  all  its  North  American  posses- 
sions. It  is  an  object  Avorthy  the  power  and  enterprise  and 
the  prestige  of  the  British  government,  and  I  thank  God 
tliat  there  is  not  an  impulse  of  my  soul,  which  would  cause 
me  to  feel  any  uneasiness  or  any  jealousy  at  the  success  of 
such  an  undertaking.  Here  we  £i,re,  two  great  powers, 
speaking  the  same  tongue,  and  let  us  look  upon  it  as  .? 
friendly  race  for  supremacy.  Let  us  see  which,  in  this 
friendly  race,  will  outstrijD  the  other — which  shall  be  the 
carriers  of  the  commerce  of  the  world. 

Gentlemen,  the  time  has  passed  for  men  seriously  to  dis- 
cuss the  question  as  to  whether  the  wants  of  commerce, 
the  duties  and  responsibilities  of  government,  the  fulfill- 
ing the  relations  of  social  and  domestic  life,  do  not  demand  a 
secure  and  rapid  transit  from  ocean  to  ocean.  The  question 
simply  is,  is  it  practicable  to  establish  great  lines  of  travel 
from  the  water  line  of  the  great  lakes  to  our  magnificent 
Puget's  sound,  chat  port  which  is  the  nearest  of  all  our 
ports  to  Asia?  Again  the  question  is,  do  not  great  national 
interests  urge  the  accomplishment  of  this  enterprise  at 
the  earliest  possible  moment?  It  is  not  whether  such  an 
undertaking  will  inure  to  the  benefit  of  Puget's  sound  or  the 
people  of  the  great  lakes,  but  whether  this  is  not  a  project 


It 

upon  vvliich  rests  tlie  questiou,  as  to  whether  the  great  car- 
rying trade  from  Asia  to  Europe  shall  pass  over  American 
or  British  soil;  whether  upon  the  success  of  this  undertak- 
ing does  not  rest  the  question,  whether  the  key  of  the 
Northern  Pacific  shall  be  in  the  hands  of  the  American 
people  or  in  the  hands  of  the  subjects  of  a  foreign  power.  It 
seems  to  me  that  not  New  York,  or  Boston,  or  Portland,  is 
alone  interested,  but  every  part  of  our  Atlantic  and  Gulf 
coast,  and  the  entire  country. 

And,  Mr.  President,  if  it  be  a  practicable  undertaking  to 
build  tliis  road  and  establish  tliis  route,  it  is  the  duty  of  our 
government  and  of  our  people  to  push  it  forward.  It  ceases 
to  be  sectional  and  geographical  and  partisan,  and  it  rises 
into  a  noble  and  elevated  nationality,  to  which  all  hearts 
should  yield.  I  propose  to  discuss  this  question  in  the 
light  of  the  practical  experience,  developed  in  the  prose- 
cution of  great  railroad  enterprises,  in  regard  to  which 
the  facts  stand  out  in  letters  of  gold. 

The  first  question  which  I  shall  consider  is,  the  objec- 
tions urged  against  the  northern  route  in  consequence  of 
the  severity  of  the  climate  and  the  excessive  depth  of  the 
snows,  and  I  regret  to  be  obliged  to  waste  time  on  a 
matter  wliich  has  long  since  been  established.  But  it  is 
still  call«d  in  question  by  men  of  intelligence,  and  has 
even  place  in  ofiicial  reports. 

In  an  examination  of  that  country,  which  I  made  in  the 
years  1853-'4-'5,  I  deemed  it  a  fundamental  and  essen- 
tial fact  to  be  determined,  and  it  was  determined  in  a 
manner  that  will  enable  me  to  speak  positively.  The 
passes  of  the  Kocky  mountains.  Hell  Gate,  Northern  Little 
Blackfoot,  and  Oadot's  Pass  were  crossed  by  my  parties  in 
the  months  of  December,  January,  February  and  March, 
in  the  years  1853-'4,  and  in  no  one  of  these  passes  did 
they  find  more  than  fifteen  inches  of  snow.  In  the  win- 
ter of  1854-'5,  the  Flathead  Indians  passed  through  these 
passes  in  January,  Feb-uary,  and  March;  whole  tribes, 


t 


with  their  women  jind  i^liildrcn,  jind  their  pack  animals 
laden  down  with  furs  and  meat.  I  was  informed  hy  Vic- 
tor, head  chief  of  the  FLithead  nation,  an  Indian  whose 
valor  and  courtesy  and  truth  have  become  classic  in  tlio 
pages  of  the  Jesuit  Missionary  de  Smet — by  Victor,  wlio 
at  seventy-five  is  still  the  leader  of  his  people  in  war,  and 
first  in  the  chase  of  the  bufialo,  that  since  the  memory  of 
the  Indian,  they  had  passed  these  mountains  year  after 
year  through  the  winter  months.  Tliat  same  winter,  the 
party  that  crossed  the  Rocky  mountains  in  January,  went 
down  Clark's  Fork  in  February;  they  went  on  horseback, 
the  sole  trouble  being  that  there  were  some  places  where 
the  snow  was  deep  enougli  to  cover  up  the  grass;  but  in 
these  cases  it  was  in  the  wooded  portions,  and  2i  feet  was 
the  greatest  depth . 

When  they  left  the  wooded  region  where  it  was  2^  feet 
deep,  and  came  to  the  prairie  region,  they  found  that  it 
was  but  a  foot  deep.  Every  gentleman  knows  what  influ- 
ence forests  have  in  preserving  the  depth  of  the  snow,  and 
how  it  disappears  when  the  land  is  cleared.  The  question  is 
not  what  depth  the  snow  is  in  the  forests,  but  what  it  will 
be  on  the  cleared  land.  There  is  one  point  alone  about 
which  we  have  not  sufiicient  information,  and  that  is,  the 
crossing  of  the  Cascade  mountains  to  Puget's  sound;  but  I 
am  satisfied  that  there  will  be  no  serious  obstruction  from 
snow.  The  snow  was  but  six  feet,  for  a  short  distance, 
in  the  latter  part  of  January,  1856,  and  I  am  of  opinion 
that  it  did  not  subsequently  increase  much  in  depth, 
tliough  this  fact  has  not  been  determined  by  actual  ad- 

easurement.  At  Fort  Benton  and  Fort  Campbell,  ever 
since  they  were  established  some  twenty -five  years  since, 
the  fur  companies  have  taken  their  goods  to  their  winter 
trading  posts,  on  the  Milk  and  Marias  rivers,  in  wagons, 
there  not  being  snow  enough  for  sleds.  Will  the  snows  of 
this  route,  which  do  not  prevent  the  Indians  from  travel- 


i  '. 


V, 


liiii;,  I'uriiish  any  dilliiUilUes  whicli  will  roudcr  it  imii.sually 
troublesome  I'or  tlie  passage  of  railroad  cars? 

I  will  now  consider  tlie  question  of  the  cold.  It  is  al- 
leged, that  the  weather  is  so  cold  on  the  route  of  the  47th 
parnllel,  that  it  will  be  impracticable  to  work  men  in  the 
construction  of  the  road  for  a  large  portion  of  the  year,  and 
that  it  will  bo  impracticable  to  run  cars  for  many  days  in 
the  winter. 

Unfortunately  for  these  opinions,  we  liappen  to  have 
observations  on  these  points,  and  to  have  great  lines  of 
railroatl  in  operation  over  tracts  of  country  as  cold,  and 
even  colder  than  the  route  from  Fort  Benton  to  the  shores 
of  the  Pacific.  The  mean  winter  temperature  at  Fort  Ben- 
ton in  '53-'54:  was  25°. 88,  above  zero.  The  average  at 
Montreal,  en  the  Grand  Trunk  railroad,  for  the  same  year, 
was  13°. 22,  and  for  a  mean  of  ten  years  17°. 80,  above  zero. 
At  Quebec  it  was,  in  '53-'54,  11°. 03,  above  zero,  and  for  a 
mean  of  10  years  13°. 30,  above  zero.  On  the  great  Kus- 
sian  railroad,  from  St.  Petersburg  to  Moscow,  the  compari- 
son is  very  similar.  The  mean  winter  temperature  for  a 
series  of  twenty-one  years  at  Moscow  is  15°. 20,  and  at  St. 
Petersburg,  for  a  mean  of  twenty-five  years,  18°.  10,  above 
zero. 

At  Fort  Snelling,  on  the  great  lines  through  Minnesota 
from  St.  Paul  to  Pembina,  and  from  St.  Paul  to  Brecken- 
ridge,  now^  actually  in  process  of  construction,  the  mean 
winter  temperature  of  '53-'54  was  11°. 64,  and  the  mean  of 
thirty-five  winters  16°.  10,  above  zero.  Thus  in  the  winter 
of  '53-'54,  an  unusually  cold  winter,  Fort  Benton  was  12° 
warmer  than  Montreal,  14°  warmer  than  Quebec,  14° 
warmer  than  Fort  Snelling,  10°  warmer  than  Moscow,  and 
7°  warmer  than  St.  Petersburg,.  Looking  to  the  Bitter 
Root  valley,  we  find  its  average  temperature  in  the  winter  of 
'53-'54  to  be  24°. 90,  and  in  '54-'55,  30°. 30  above  zero, 
making  it  for  the  two  winters  respectively  10°  and  15° 
warmer  than  at  Moscow,  and  7°  and  12°  warmei*  than  at  St. 


t 


17 


Petersburg.  In  I85ii  '4  it  was  12"^  warmer  than  at  Mon- 
treal, and  14°  warmer  than  at  Quebec.  But  ]  will  not 
content  myself  with  giving  you  the  average  winter  temper- 
atures: let  us  consider  the  greafcer.c  cold  observed.  The 
greatest  cold  in  the  winter  of  '53-'54  was  29°  below  zero 
at  Cantonment  Stevens.  At  Fort  Snelling  it  was  3G°,  at 
Montreal  34°,  and  at  Que])ec  29°,  below  zero,  from  which 
you  will  see,  that  on  this  route,  the  greatest  cold  is  not  equal 
to  the  greatest  cold  on  the  route  of  the  Grand  Trunk  rail- 
road of  Canada.  Tlie  same  fact  is  unquestionably  true  of 
the  great  artery  of  Kussia  from  Moscow  to  St.  Petersburg, 
but  I  have  not  been  able  to  obtain  the  daily  observations 
for  purposes  of  comparison.  We  will  look  at  it  in  another 
point  of  view.  Take  tlie  number  of  cold  days  when  the  av- 
erage temperature  was  below  zero.  The  PA'erage  tempera- 
ture was  below  zero  twelve  days  at  Fort  Benton,  ten  days  at 
Cantonment  Stevens,  eighteen  days  at  Fort  Snelling^  eigh- 
teen days  at  Montreal,  and  twenty-three  days  at  Quebec. 
Thus  you  will  see  that  tliere  were  more  cold  days  on  the 
line  of  the  Great  Trunk  railroad,  and  of  tlie  roads  in  Min- 
nesota, than  on  this  northern  route.  Having  compared 
the  average  winter  temperatures,  and  the  number  of  cold 
days,  let  us  look  at  tlie  climate  in  another  point  of  view. 
Take  the  number  of  warm  days  when  the  average  temper- 
ature was  above  the  freezing  point,  and  I  find  that  at  Fort 
Benton  the  thermometer  was  forty-three  out  of  ninety  days, 
and  at  Cantonment  Stevens  thirty-two  out  of  ninety  days 
above  the  freezing  point,  against  only  six  days  out  of  ninety 
at  Fort  Snelling,  five  days  out  of  ninety  at  Quebec,  eight 
days  out  of  ninety  at  Montreal,  and  eighteen  days  out  of 
ninety  at  Albany — all  in  the  winter  of  1853-'54. 

But  it  may  be  objected,  that  the  temperature  of  Fort  Ben- 
ton and  Cantonment  Stevens  is  not  the  measure  of  the 
temperature  of  the  intermediate  rocky  range  through  which 
the  route  passes,  and  which  must  be  much  lower.     B^ortu- 

nately  the  partv  of  Lieut.  Grover,  which  has  been  already 
3 


18 


referred  to  in  connection  with  the  depth  of  snow,  made  ob- 
servations of  temperature  on  the  route,  and  it  has  been 
found  by  careful  comparison  that  the  party  made  the  pas- 
sage during  the  extreme  cold  weather  of  that  winter,  and 
the  temperatures  observed,  therefore,  indicate  tlie  extremest 
cold  of  the  pass,  and  not  the  usual  cold.  A  very  intelligent 
young  man  who  accoroT)anied  Lieut.  Clrover  to  Fort  Owen 
returned  immediately,  and  found  the  weather  very  mild  and 
pleasant  in  the  pass,  corresponding  to  the  observed  temper- 
atures at  Fort  Benton  and  Cantonment  Stevens.  The  mean 
temperature  in  the  pass  from  January  12th  to  January 
23d,  12  days,  was  10°  ,!„-,  below  zero.  At  Cantonment  Ste- 
vens the  mean  temperature  was  5°. 2,  below  zero;  at  Fort 
Benton  7°. 3,  below  zero.  The  greatest  mean  cold  of  any 
day  observed  in  the  pass  was  22°,  below  zero,  against  24° 
at  Fort  Snelling,  and  a  still  lower  figure  at  Pembina. 
That  the  winter  of  '53-'54  was  unusually  cold  in  the  moun- 
tain region  of  the  northern  route,  is  shown  in  the  fact  that, 
in  the  Bitter  Root  valley,  the  thermometer  never  went  down 
to  zero  in  the  winter  of  '54-'55,  whilst  it  fell  as  low  as  29° 
below  zero  in  the  winter  of  '53-' 54.  The  average  mean 
temperature  of  this  valley  in  the  winter  of  '53-'54  was 
24°. 90,  whereas  in  '54-'55  it  was  30°. 30.  The  same  general 
result,  determined  by  observation,  as  regards  the  tempera- 
ture of  the  pass,  would  be  arrived  at  by  using  the  formula, 
that  every  1,000  feet  in  altitude  would  depress  the  tempera- 
ture three  degrees.  Now  only  six  miles  of  the  pass  is  more 
than  5,000  feet  above  the  sea,  the  greatest  altitude  being 
but  6,044  feet,  and  the  average  height  of  the  pass  is  but 
about  4,000  feet.  The  pass,  considering  simply  165  miles 
of  the  distance,  where  the  altitude  exceeds  three  thousand 
feet,  will  be  only  from  one  to  ten  degrees  colder  than  Fort 
Benton,  and  except  the  six  miles  above  mentioned  only 
from  one  to  seven  degrees  colder. 

Gentlemen,  it  seems  to  me  that  these  facts,  drawn  from 
official  records,  every  one  of  them  entirely  reliable,  ought 


1!) 


V 


to  settle  forever  the  question  which  has  been  raised  preju- 
dicial to  this  route,  that  it  will  be  obstructed  by  snow  and 
cold  weather.  So  successful  has  been  the  great  rail- 
road from  Moscow  to  St.  Petersburg,  that  they  are  now 
pushing  railroads  in  all  directions,  running*  them  into 
regions  truly  Siberian,  crossing  tracts  where  for  three 
months  the  thermometer  never  rises  above  zero,  and  for 
many  days  the  temperature  is  lower  than  the  greatest  cold 
ever  reached  in  the  mountains  of  the  United  States.  We 
find  that  Canadian  roads  are  being  extended  westward 
utterly  regardless  of  those  objections,  experience  having 
shown  their  futility.  I  have  lived  in  the  snow  State  of 
Maine,  and  am  familiar  with  lumbering  operations  on 
the  Kennebec  and  the  Penobscot,  where  timber  is  cut, 
roads  are  opened,  and  logs  hauled  to  the  streams  to  have 
them  in  readiness  for  the  freshets  of  spring,  in  snow  four 
to  six  feet  deep.  We  have  a  body  of  railroad  engineers 
and  contractors  who  have  gained  their  professional  and 
practical  knowledge  in  these  snow  regions,  and  who  know 
that  the  obstacles  which  have  been  apprehended  from  snow 
have  all  disappeared  in  the  light  of  experience.  It  is  not 
the  snow  of  your  mountains  in  the  interior,  even  if  it  should 
reach  a  depth  of  from  six  to  eight  feet,  that  will  be  an 
obstruction  to  the  passage  of  cars,  for  by  raising  yc  .v  road- 
bed and  using  the  plough  you  can  throw  it  off  Avithout  diffi- 
culty. The  snow  comes  not  in  single  falls,  but  in  succes- 
sive falls,  and  there  will  be  no  difficulty  in  keeping  the 
track  clear.  On  the  seaboard,  the  snow  when  followed  by 
rain,  and  the  weather  suddenly  turns  cold,  freezing  the 
sleet  to  the  rail,  may  and  does  sometimes  furnish  an  ob- 
struction, that  may  require  days  to  overcome.  If  I  were 
asked,  where  I  should  expect  the  most  difficulty  Irom  snow 
in  the  whole  country,  from  the  Atlantic  to  the  Pacific,  I 
should  say  the  first  ten  miles  from  the  Atlantic  ports.  1 
cannot  say  this  for  the  Pacific  ports,  for  there  snow  is  sel- 
dom seen,  and  when  it  does  fall  it  disappears  in  a  short 


1 


20 

time.  I  Hhall  therotbre  a«Hiiriie  tluit  tliis  route  is  entirely 
practicable  so  I'ar  as  regards  cold  ami  snow,  and  will  pass 
on  to  a  more  detailed  view  of  its  characteristics  and  its  re- 
lation to  other  routes.  I  will  })resent  it  as  a  good  route 
for  emigrants  hy  the  ordinary  conveyances  of  the  country. 
The  distance  from  St.  Paul's  and  the  western  end  of  Lake 
Superior  to  the  sliores  of  I'uget's  sound,  is  in  round  numbers 
eighteen  hundred  miles.  Will  the  difficulties  which  1  have 
presented  in  tiieway  of  a  railroad,  interfere  with  the  carry- 
ing of  the  mails  and  the  transportation  of  passengers  the 
entire  year  on  this  route?  I  think  not.  1  think  that 
not  only  ought  the  mails  to  be  ciirried  over  tliis  route  the 
entire  year,  but  in  a  limited  number  of  days.  Tiie  service 
ought  to  be  rendered  on  this  road  in  wagons  in  eighteen 
days,  whicii  Avould  be  only  one  hundred  miles  a  day. 
Russia,  in  the  matter  of  her  enterprises  for  carrying  the 
mails,  is  ahead  of  any  other  PoAver  in  the  world,  and  she 
can  give  us  lessons,  that  it  will  be  well  for  us  to  profit  by. 
Our  consul  at  the  Amoor,  Mr.  Collins,  has  given  us  the 
facts  of  the  great  postal  service  of  Russia  from  Moscow  to 
Irkoutsk,  in  eastern  Siberia.  The  distance  is  not  eigliteen 
hundred,  but  three  thousand  four  hundred  and  twenty-six 
miles.  On  this  route  are  established  two  hundred  and  f  n 
stations,  with  a  postmaster  and  the  necessary  relays  ot 
horses  at  each  station.  The  contractors  are  obliged  to  carry 
the  mails  twice  a  week,  and  they  are  also  obliged  to  trans- 
port passengers  over  the  route  at  certain  rates  of  travel,  to 
wit:  at  eight  miles  an  hour  in  winter,  six  and  two-thirds  in 
summer,  and  five  and  one-third  in  the  fall.  The  time  re- 
quired to  carry  the  mails  over  the  entire  route,  is  from 
twenty-five  to  thirty  days,  a  distance  on  the  average  of  from 
one  hundred  and  twelve  to  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven 
miles  per  day,  while  the  government  couriers  go  over  th 
route  in  from  fifteen  to  twenty  days,  or  at  an  average  of  from 
1*71  to  228  miles  per  day.  That  mail  route  is  between  the  52d 
and  58th  parallels,  crofjses  considerable  mountain  chains, 


21 


and  the  tlicriiioint'tci'  in  wiiittT,  on  u  large  portion  of  it,  is 
habitually  helow  zero.  At  Moscow,  the  eastern  terminus 
of  the  route,  the  average  of  the  thermometer  is  15°,  and  at 
Tobolsk  'J.'^  above  zero,  while  at  Tomsk  it  is  2°,  and  at 
Irkoutsk  l'^  below  zero.  Tim  average  temperatures  for 
January,  for  the  three  latter  places,  were  respectively  3*^, 
')",  and  G"  below  zero.  Mr.  (.ollins  himself  travelled  over 
the  entire  route  in  winter  and  early  spring,  uiaking  such 
rates  of  travel  as  these.  Tie  travelled  from  Vercli-neo-dinsk 
toChetab,  oOO  miles,  in  forty-five  bours;  from  Irkoutsk  to 
Kvachta,  li<)7  miles,  in  fortv-eii-'lit  bours.  ]3ut  he  mentions 
another  fact  more  significant  still.  On  this  distance  of  3,4li() 
miles,  between  tlie  parallels  of  52  and  58,  the  thermometer 
on  a  large  portion  it,  tbrougb  the  winter,  below  zero,  he 
found  five  hundred  cities,  and  villages,  and  towns,  siiowing 
conclusivelv  that  the  extreme  cold  ])resented  no  diJHcultv  in 
the  way  of  the  occupation  of  the  country.  This  lias  all 
been  done  by  imperial  edicts,  acting  on  a  nation  of  serfs, 
done  simply  in  obedience  to  the  idea  of  reverence  for  au- 
thority. What  will  not  the  genius  and  enterprise  of  freemen 
and  citizens  do  on  any  of  our  overland  routes,  when  the 
government  comes  forward  and  establishes  its  mail  service, 
when  the  contractor  is  not  hampered  by  petty  and  exact- 
ing restrictions,  and  our  people  are  left  free,  each  man  to 
carve  out  his  fortunes  and  his  home.  The  Czar  ol" 
Russia  establishes  his  route,  and  in  part  builds  up  his 
towns  and  villages  and  cities  with  his  prisoners  of  State 
and  the  refuse  of  his  jails,  whereas  in  our  case  it  will  be 
the  very  flower  and  substance  of  our  people,  who  will  apply 
the  energies  of  freemen  and  of  sovereigns  to  the  building 
up  of  our  routes.  I  therefore  have  a  right  to  assume,  in 
the  light  of  the  experience  of  the  great  mail  service  of  Si- 
beria, that  there  will  be  no  difficulty  on  our,  comparatively 
speaking,  much  milder  and  shorter  route. 

Let  us  look,  however,  to  existing  routes  within  the  limits 
of  the  United  States.     The  cold  on  the  route  from  St.  Paul's 


oo 


to  liii  CroHsu  is  jrrcater  than  in  the  Rocky  mountuin  region 
oi  the  nortlieru  route,  and  yet  from  8t.  raiil's  to  La  Crosse 
the  mails  will  be  carried  this  winter,  a  distance  of  nearly  two 
hundred  miles,  in  forty-eight  hours.  For  the  last  twelve 
vears,  the  mails  have  been  carried  from  Ht.  Paul's  to  Pem- 
bina,  witliout,  in  any  case,  a  failure  to  carry  them  in  the 
prescribed  time. 

The  pioneers  of  Minnesota  and  the  Northwest  find  no  diffi- 
culty in  encountering  the  cold  and  attending  to  their  out- 
door business,  and  they  are  satisfied  that  the  mails  can  be 
carricil  in  that  region,  and  passengers  transported  as 
rapidly  as  in  the  Piussian  service. 

When  we  meet  such  men,  admitted  to  be  men  of  expe- 
rience, integrity,  and  capacity,  and  who  from  unpromising 
and  uncertain  beginnings  have  carved  out  fortune  and  re- 
putation, let  us  accept  the  results  of  their  experience  and 
observation,  ratlier  than  the  speculations  of  the  closet  and 
the  systems  of  the  schools. 

1  now  come  specifically  to  the  discussion  of  this  northern 
route,  and  1  will  compare  it,  with  all  the  candor  and  fair- 
ness 1  am  able,  with  other  proposed  routes,  and  endeavor 
to  show,  from  statistics,  how  much  entitled  it  is  to  national 
consideration. 

llailroad  lines  have  frequently  been  presented  by  way  of 
antagonism  to  water  lines.  Now  each  has  its  part  in  the 
economical  transportation  of  passengers  and  freight;  rail- 
roads cannot  do  away  with  canals,  nor  canals  with  rail- 
roads. We  find,  that  with  the  extension  of  our  great  rail- 
road system,  the  canal  system  has  also  been  extended  in 
an  equal  proportion. 

New  York  has  built  her  great  lines  of  railroads,  and  slie 
has  also  enlarged  her  Erie  canal.  The  Canadas  have  built 
their  Great  Trunk  and  Western  roads,  and  now  new  pro- 
jects are  presented  for  shortening  the  water  communication 
from  Lake  Huron  to  the  waters  of  the  St.  Lawrence.  We 
find  that  the  cost  of  transporting  goods  on  great  water 


f 


i 


»»•! 


lineH  Ih  viiHtly  h'ss  per  mile,   tlmii  the  lost   ul"  truiisportiin' 
goods  oil  railrnjul  lines.     In  a  ]ai'«.,^('  ocean  voyage  tlio  rate 
is,  j)er]iaps,  one  and  a  lialf  mills  per  ton  per  mile;  on  n  great 
navigable  river,  or  great  canal,  the  amount  increases  to 
two  and   a  lialf  mills  per  ton  per  mile;  wliereas    there  is 
no  railroad  line,  Iniilt  at  liome  or  abroad,  wliere  the  cost  of 
transportation  will  be  materially  less  than  five  mills  })er 
mile,  and  it  will  vary,  according  to  the  grade  of  the  road, 
from  five  to  twenty-odd  mills  i)er  mile.     Thus  you  will  ob- 
serve, that  on  the  great  water  lines,  the  ocean,  the  Missis- 
sippi, the  great  lakes  and  the  New  York  canals,  the  cost  of 
transportation  is  but  a  fraction,  seldom  exceeding  one-half, 
and  not  often  one-quarter,  the  cost  on  the  railroad;  and 
hence,  even  in  the  case  jf  water  lines  closed  by  ice  nearly 
half  the  year,  they  will  carry  the  heavy  and  ])ulky  com- 
modities, as  grain,  coal,  and  machinery;  the  railroads  car- 
rying the  light,  perishable  and  costly  articles,  where  time 
becomes  an  im})ortant  element  in  the  cost.     If  a  railroad 
communication  be  an  inseparable  connecting-link  between 
great  water  lines,  it  is  entitled  to  special  consideration. 
Such  is  the  proposed  railroad  on  this  northern  route.     It 
connects  the  navigable  waters  of  the  Missouri  with  the 
navigable   waters  of  the  Columbia,   and   at   the  head   of 
steamboat  navigation.     It  connects  Puget's  sound  and  tlie 
Columbia  valley  with  the  head  of  navigation  of  the  great 
8t.  Lawrence  basin,  and  with  the  heads  of  navigation  of 
the  Mississippi  and  the  Eed  river  of  the  north.     It  is  the 
shortest  equated  railroad  line  across  the  continent,  whether 
the  eastern   terminus  be  on  the   western  border   of  the 
States  or  on  the  Mississippi,  or,  in  the  case  of  the  northern 
route,  on  Lake  Superior;  and  it  is  much  the  shortest  lin- 
eally of  all  the  roads,  except  those  from  San  Diego  and  San 
Pedro,  on  the  route  of  the  32d  parallel. 

In  connection  with  either  the  great  lakes  and  its  system 
of  canals  and  rivers,  or  the  great  railroad  lines  of  the  Can- 
adas  and  the  United  States,  it  furnishes  the  most  direct  and 


clit'upest  route.'  (Hi  the  t-oiitinent  tor  IVoiglits  and  pasHeii^cTH 
from  Asia  to  Eiirojje  and  back  again,  and  also  between 
Asia  and  the  people  of  our  iS'orthwest,  our  West,  our  centre, 
oiir  East,  and  tlie  great  seats  of  commerce  on  the  Atlantic 
coast. 

The  lineal  distances  on  the  route  of  the  32d  parallel 
to  the  Mississii)pi  are  1,748  and  l,G8o,  against  1.747  and 
1,764,  the  lineal  distances  of  Vancouver  and  Seattle  from 
St.  Paul's,  and  against  l,73i)and  1,750,  the  lineal  distances 
of  Vancouver  and  Seattle  from  Superior  C'ity;  and  starting 
from  tlie  western  border  of  the  States,  tlie  lineal  distances 
on  the  route  of  the  82d  parallel  are  1,598  and  1,533  miles, 
against  1,527  and  1,546  miles,  the  lineal  distances  from 
Breckenridge  to  Vancouver  and  Seattle. 

The  foUoAving  table  is  from  official  reports,  wherein  I  have 
shown  the  distances  on  an  air-line  between  the  termini  of 
the  several  explored  j)racticable  railroad  lines  across  the 
continent,  the  lineal  distances,  the  sums  of  ascents  and 
descents,  the  equated  distances  in  miles,  the  estimated  cost, 
the  extent  of  cultivable  country,  *^he  extent  of  country 
which  is  less  than  1,000  feet  above  the  sea,  the  extent  of 
country  which  lies  between  1,000  and  2,000  feet  above 
the  sea,  the  extent  of  country  between  2,000  and  3,000  feet 
above  the  sea,  the  extent  of  country  between  3,000  and 
4^,000  feet  above  the  sea,  the  extent  of  country  between 
4,000  and  5,000  feet  above  the  sea,  the  extent  of  country 
between  5,000  and  6,000  feet  above  the  sea,  the  extent  of 
country  between  6,000,  and  9,000  feet  above  the  sea,  and 
the  summit  of  the  highest  pass  on  each  route  for  the 
routes  of  the  47th  parallel,  42d  parallel,  35th  parallel,  and 
32d  parallel. 


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CO 


•saiuoj 
;uajaj}ip  JO  jsoo  aAiivavdraog 


o 
o 
o 

o 
o 
o^ 

cT 

C5 


o 
o 

cT 

o 
© 


o 
o 

o 

o" 
o 

o 

od" 


o 
o 
o 

o~ 

o 
o 

otT 
o 


'asuadxa  Sui^ijoav 
jBnba  JO  a^noj  jOAai  jo  q^Sua-^ 


in 
o 

co" 


1— 


•s^uaosap  pnu  sjuaosw  jo  umg 


'o^noj 
pBOJiiBJ  pasodojd  Xq  aouBiSTQ 


c» 

in 


00 


CI 

o 
.<» 

od" 


o 
o 

CI 

ocT 

01 


00        o 


o 

CO 


CO 

CO 


o 
o 


o 

CJ 

00 


"^  00  CO 

CI  O  CO 

O  lO  uo 

CI  >— I  1— t 


'auii-JiB  Aq  aauB^siQ 


O 

m 

m 


o 
o 
CO 


o      o 

CO        o 
CO        -^ 


o 
CO 


^"C 

r-'-a 

SCO 

:St^ 

2  o 

c4 

S5 

"^^ 

Ch 

CO  "'•' 

coco 

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iis 

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r^ 

■1* 

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CO  o 

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»-  CO  Q  f^   « 

o  CI  5  fl 


^ 


.     5 

3     3 


27 

1  have  assumed  as  the  startiug  point  of  the  northern 
route,  for  the  purpose  of  this  comparison,  Breckenridge,  on 
the  western  border  of  the  State  of  Minnesota,  a  point  which 
is  a  terminus  of  a  road  now  actually  under  construction  by 
aid  of  the  land  grants  of  the  government. 

The  following  table  makes  the  eastern  termini  at  Supe- 
rior City  and  St.  Paul's,  and  of  the  other  routes,  on  tho 
Mississippi  river : 


*, 


i 


28 


'^ 


K    Co 

•I  s 

o  o 


to 
c 

S) 


0>  er, 


00 


Si    o 


•asuddxo 
SnxTjjoM.  [Bnba  jo 
ainoj  pA3[  JO  qjSudi 


Tfi  1:- GO  rH 
C5  «D  i—  GO 
i—i  O  I— t  O 


•N        rs        •> 


(M  (M  (M  (M 


CO 
00 


•sjuoosap 
puw  s}uaDsu  JO  lung 


lO  «.« 

li- 

OS J^- 

GO  i-i 

es 

T— (  r-t 

c^j  0 

CO 

CO  CO 

•N          #^ 

#N 

•>          •\ 

CO  CO 

(M  (M  cq 

jb-t- t-^-. 
oo  00  00  00 

t-  10  J::-  10 


(M 


CM 


00 
CO 

Ci 


05  CO 

00  o 


O  rH  Ttl 

»0  CO  O 
CO  CO  CO 

^         #s         •% 

GO  O  CO 

CO  CO  CO 


■oaii  p«oj[iijj 
pasoclojd  A"q  soaBjsiQ 


O  CO  -TtH  Jt- 
iO  CO  O  '<:f 


C5 


CD  O 
to  CS 
CO  o 


'^  'X  CO 
1--  "^i  00 
-^  b-  CO 

•".       •%       p^ 

O-l    f— I    T-H 


o 


o 
o 

c 


OD  K^  -M 
O  ?3 


o 

a 
o 

o 

>  ce 

o  -^ 

S    rt    i=! 
^    ^    ^ 

O 
O 


3 

:3 


CCCC'   o 

J£   a:      r, 
^  "  ^ 

'^  "rt  S 
^  t-  -3 
rt   rt   i; 


s;-i 


02 


s 


:3 


tJ-  T3  ^  S  <^1  '** 


-     rt 


j^  o  c3  rt  j:  ^ 

C^  '-S    i^  i>  o  g 

i^  o  d  o  Jl 

o  o  o  o  '^ 


uo 
CO 


c3 
°  o 

OS 


c    ^ 

'••'   •  ^^ 

o   o 
"^     c 

'-'  - 
a: 

^-< 

^    O 

.-   ^ 

o  3 

p  p 

^    "13  .    .  ,         - 

CO  CO  i^  CO  CO 

t-  f-  5  ^ 

c3    ce    p    c3 


ri    "5 

o  o 


c  2 


a 

02 
0 

.-H 

C 

"n* 

a 

C^ 

0 

c 

S 

n 

0 

Ih 

.ti 

C 

!*- 

O    OJ 


en 


S-i 


^'o  5  =s  g  3  d 


o  o 


o  o 


^      I 


C£      Cflas      S5ft2 


29 


If  I  am  met  witli  the  objection  that  the  Arkansas,  Missis- 
sippi and  Missouri  are  navigable,  and  that  the  routes  on 
the  42d,  35th  and  32d  parallels  should  be  stopped  short  at 
navigable  waters,  then,  for  purposes  of  comparison,  I  say 
very  well,  we  will  stop  the  northern  road  at  Fort  Benton, 
at  the  head  of  steamboat  navigation  of  the  ^Mississippi, 
which  will  give  a  result  vastly  in  its  favor.  1  am  of 
opinion,  however,  that  the  Mississippi  valley  and  the  great 
lakes  is  the  proper  eastern  base.  Thus  we  find — the  western 
terminus  of  the  routes  of  the  42d,  35th  and  3 2d  parallels, 
being  San  Francisco — that  the  lineal  length  of  the  northen 
route  is  549  miles  shorter  than  that  of  the  42d  parallel,  616 
miles  shorter  than  that  of  the  35th  parallel,  424  miles  shorter 
than  that  of  the  32d  parallel;  and  that,  as  regards  the 
equated  distances,  the  northern  line  is  689  miles  shorter 
than  the  line  of  the  42d  parallel,  1,121  miles  shorter  than 
the  line  of  the  35th  parallel,  and  733  miles  shorter  than 
the  line  of  the  32d  parallel.  But,  looking  to  tlie  eastern 
terminus,  where  are  you  when  you  reach  the  Mississippi  on 
the  route  of  the  42d,  35th  and  32d  parallels? 

You  are  on  a  great  navigable  river,  from  which  you  can 
supply  the  Mississippi  valley;  but  how  will  you  reach 
New  York,  Chicago,  Portland,  Boston,  Philadelphia  and 
Baltimore  ? 

Will  you  tranship  on  the  Mississippi,  and  take  your 
winding  course  by  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  or  take  the  rail, 
and  seek  some  of  the  intermediate  water  lines  which  stretch 
along  the  whole  distance  ? 

Will  you  make  use  of  the  Ohio,  and  the  railroads  and 
canals  of  New  York,  Pennsylvania  and  Virginia?  On 
the  northern  route  we  are  on  navigable  waters;  we  are 
now  ready  to  enter  our  ships  and  go  to  Europe,  or  to  New 
York;  or,  arrived  at  Montreal,  we  can  pass  by  rail  to  Port- 
land. If  we  compare  Chicago  as  a  great  lake  port  with 
Superior  City,  its  distance  from  Puget's  sound  on  the 
northern  route  ^ia  St.  Paul's,  is  317  miles  shorter  than  its 
distance  from  Benicia  via  South  pass. 


30 


TJie  lineal  distances  from  Seattle  via  Northern  route,  via 
St.  Paul's,  and  from  Benicia  via  South  Pass,  via  Council 
Bluffs,  via  St.  Louis,  to  these  several  ports  of  the  Atlantic 
and  Gulf  coast,  will  be  as  follows: 


■'«..'• 


Seattle,  via  ;  Benicia,  via 
yt.  Paul.     \   yt.  Louis. 


Portland 

Boston 

ISew  York 

t*hiladelphia . 

Baltimore 

Washington.. 
Charleston . . . . 

Savannah 

Mobile 

New  Orleans. 


Averages. 


3,249 
3,352 
3,126 
2,988 
2,966 
3,004 
3,328 
3,313 
3,030 
3,115 


3,831 
3,696 
3,546 
3,454 
3.355 
3,375 
3,445 
3,430 
3,147 
3,232 


3,131.1      3,453.1 


Differences  in 

favor  of 
Nor'n  route. 


582 
344 
420 
466 
389 
371 
117 
117 
117 
117 


•V 


The  distance  from  Beuicia  to  St.  Louis  is  2,482  miles. 

Thus  the  average  distance  from  Seattle,  via  St.  Paul'?;,  to 
the  principal  ports  of  the  Atlantic  and  gulf,  is  316  miles 
less  than  the  average  from  Benicia  via  St.  Louis  to  the 
game  points.  This  saving  of  distance  via  St.  Paul's  ranges 
from  117  miles,  as  in  the  case  of  New  Orleans,  to  582 
miles,  as  in  the  case  of  Portland.  U  the  equated  distances 
were  used,  it  would  make  an  additional  difference  in  favor 
of  the  northern  route  of  137  miles.  Thus  every  6eat  of 
commerce  on  the  coast  is  nearer  to  Puget's  sound  by  the 
northern  route,  than  to  the  waters  of  San  Francisco  by  the 
central  route.     See  Appendix  for  the  lines  in  detail. 

I  am,  however,  of  the  opinion  that  no  single  line  of  rail- 
road is  the  proper  American  solution  of  the  problem  of 
continental  communication.  i' 

The  r-  thern  route  should  not  alone  be  patronized  by 
the  government.  The  mail  service  now  in  operation,  and 
about  to  be  put  in  operation,  indicates  three  lines  which 


i 


■41 


na 
oil 
tic 


I  in 


S 


'V 


to 

68 
be 
es 
32 

les 
or 
of 

lie 

lie 

il- 
of 

id 

3h 


fihoulil  share  the  patroiiuge  of  the  governmeut;  but  thene 
few  facts  as  to  distances,  and  the  known  relations  between 
water  lines  and  railroad  lines,  must  show  you  conclusively 
that  on  this  northern  route  must  pass  the  great  carrying 
trade  from  Asia  to  Europe,  and  from  Europe  to  Asia;  that 
on  this  northern  route  must  pass  Asiatic  supplies  for  much 
the  largest  portion  of  our  own  country  and  the  Canadas. 
It  is  most  emphatically  a  national  route;  and  if  we  do  not 
establish  it,  the  British  people  and  government  will  estab- 
lish one  north  of  the  49th  parallel,  and  then  we  shall  find 
ourselves  in  the  position  of  the  people,  from  whose  hands 
had  passed  the  sceptre  of  Judah. 

It  will  be  pertinent  in  connection  with  this  northern  route 
for  a  Pacific  railroad,  to  refer  somewhat  in  detail  to  its 
capacity  for  settlement.  I  have  had  the  advantage  of  going 
over  the  difficult  and  disputed  points  of  this  road  three 
times,  and  have  travelled  over  it  at  various  seasons  of  the 
year.  The  last  time  I  crossed  the  mountain  region  was  in 
the  months  of  November  and  December,  1855;  and  I  am  of 
the  opinion,  derived  from  careful,  and,  I  trust,  accurate  ob- 
servation of  the  country — that  continuous  agricultural  set- 
tlements can  be  planted  nearly  the  wliole  distance  along  this 
line.  If  you  will  follow  me  on  this  map,  you  will  perceive 
that  the  continuous  line  of  settlement  will  extend  to  beyond 
James  river,  in  the  new  Territory  of  Dacotah.  From  that 
point  to  the  entrance  to  the  valley  of  Mouse  river,  there 
are  swales  and  good  land  from  point  to  point,  sufficient  to 
form  nuclei  for  mail  stations,  at  less  than  fifteen  miles  apart. 
In  this  Mouse  River  valley  there  is  much  cultivable  land. 
In  crossing  the  Grand  Couteau  du  Missouri,  you  come  to 
an  undulating  and  somewhat  broken  surface,  which  fur- 
nishes tolerable  grazing;  but  for  fifty  miles,  not  much  laud 
for  settlements.  When  you  come  to  the  Missouri,  in  the 
vicinity  of  Big  Muddy  river,  you  find  a  region  for  settle- 
ments, and  a  large  tract  of  country  admirably  adapted  to 
all  kinds  of  cereals  and  vegetable)*. 


f 


•'•) 
oi 


The  Milk  River  valley,  tliroii^-li  whicli  the  route  passes, 
has  very  tine  wheat  lands,  not  simply  in  its  own  valleys 
and  those  of  its  tributary  streams,  but  in  the  adjacent  prai- 
ries. When  you  reach  the  Missouri  again,  you  come  to 
bottoms  of  arable  land,  with  groves  of  cottonwood,  like 
those  of  Milk  river,  of  large  growth,  suitable  for  fires 
and  building.  The  various  tributaries  of  the  Missouri,  in 
the  vicinity  of  the  head  of  navigation,  furnish  large  quan- 
tities of  arable  land. 

The  Marias,  Teton,  Sun,  Dearborn,  High  Wood,  Smith's, 
Judith,  and  other  streams  are  all  well  adapted  to  settle- 
ment. 

In  the  .summer  of  1854,  explorations  were  made  from 
Fort  Benton  along  the  eastern  base  of  the  Rocky  moun- 
tains ;  and  where  you  see  this  summer  isothermal  line, 
there  are  rich  farming  lands.  Inspect  this  line,  and  you 
will  find  it  sixty  degrees  above  zero  ;  and  there  is  nothing 
in  the  summer  temperature  which  will  interfere  with  crops. 
Recollect  that  there  are  no  chilling  blasts  from  May  to  Oc- 
tober, to  blight  tlie  promised  harvest ;  and  here  let  me 
say,  that  when  Lieut.  Mullan  passed  this  Divide  (Mullan's 
pass)  in  March,  from  Fort  Benton,  he  found  no  snow  in 
the  pass  or  along  the  route.  I  will  therefore  say,  in  round 
numbers,  that  from  Breckenridge,  on  the  Red  river  of  the 
north,  to  the  Divide  of  the  Rocky  mountains,  the  route 
passes  through  strictly  a  cultivable  country,  capable  of  con- 
tinuous settlement,  except  for  about  150  miles,  in  three 
several  sections  of  about  equal  lengths  ;  on  this  j^ortion  you 
can  plant  agricultural  settlements,  at  points  sufficient  for 
railroad  or  mail  stations.  From  near  the  Divide  of  the  Rocky 
mountains,  the  country  is  capable  of  continuous  settlement 
to  within  twenty  miles  of  the  Divide  of  the  Bitter  Root 
mountains ;  the  eastern  half  of  the  great  plain  of  the  Colum- 
bia, the  northern  and  the  southern  portions,  consist  of  rich 
river  valleys  and  fertile  table-lands.  A  portion  of  the  west- 
ern half  will  not  furnish  arable  land  for  continuous  settle- 


; 


' 


'6'6 


I 


iiieiits.  Between  the  l'ttliiinl»i;i  and  tlic  Ca«eii<lG  moiiuiitiii.s, 
the  line  is  flanked  on  the  south  by  a  large  body  of  fertile 
land,  and  passes  immediately  through  a  fine  grass  country, 
and  for  at  least  half  the  distance  through  an  excellent  culti- 
vable country.  From  the  Cascade  mountains  to  the  Sound, 
the  line  passes  through  a  continuously  cultivable  country. 
I  estimate  that  the  mountain  region  between  tlie  head  of 
the  Missouri  and  the  great  ])lain  of  the  Columbia,  the  wliole 
intermediate  country,  admits  < if  continuous  cultivation,  ex- 
cept about  forty  miles  on  tlie  highest  part  of  tlie  Rocky 
mountains,  and  thirty  miles  in  the  highest  part  of  the 
Bitter  Root  mountains.  Look  on  this  map:  There  is  a 
prairie  (pointing  it  out  on  the  map)  of  3,000  acres,  four  to 
eight  miles  west  of  the  Divide  of  the  Rocky  mountains, 
where  can  be  raised  wheat  and  the  ordinary  vegetables. 

The  railroad  line  could  be  laid  over  the  great  plain 
of  the  Columbia  so  as  to  pass  over  a  continuous  cultivable 
country  to  the  Columbia,  except  for  a  few  miles;  but  to 
cross  north  of  the  mouth  of  the  Snake  river,  which  is  de- 
sirable to  avoid  detour,  it  will  pass  over  about  fifty  miles 
of  country  not  adapted  to  continuous  cultivation,  and  having 
the  general  characteristics  of  the  western  half  of  the  great 
plains  already  described.  I  will  estimate  that  tliere  are 
fifty  miles  of  uncultivable  country  between  the  main  Co- 
lumbia and  Puget's  sound,  though  it  is  a  large  estimate. 
Thus,  in  the  whole  distance  from  Breckenridgc  to  Seattle, 
a  distance  of  1,544  miles,  the  route  passes  through  only 
about  320  miles  of  uncultivable  country.  East  of  Breck- 
enridgc, to  St.  Paul's  and  Lake  Superior,  the  country  is 
exceedingly  rich,  and  inviting  to  the  settler. 

In  the  report  of  the  explorations  which  I  made  in  1854, 
I  did  not  do  justice  to  the  route.  I  was  over-cautious. 
As  I  crossed  the  country,  I  was  astonished  to  find  it  so 
different  from  report,  and  I  took  great  pains  to  guard 
against  speaking  of  it  in  terms  of  extravagance.  Especially 
did  I  do  injustice  to  the  country  between  the  Cascades  and 
5 


the  Bittt-r  Hoot.  It  has  since  ht'oii  more  ciin'l'ull.v  exuiiiinoil 
by  myself,  and  information  has  been  collected  from  various 
Kources.  The  Indian  agents  liave  done  much  in  this  way, 
in  tiic  discharjjje  of  the  duty  intrusted  to  them  of  ascertain- 
ing suitable  places  for  reservations.  The  agent  Bolon,  who 
was  murdered  by  the  Indians  at  the  commencement  of  our 
disastrous  war  in  the  fall  of  1855,  had  in  the  previous 
summer  careliiUy  examined  the  country  between  the  Cas- 
cade mountains  and  the  main  Columbia,  known  as  the 
Yakima  country,  and  found  it  much  better  than  he  sup- 
posed it  to  be  the  previous  season,  when  engaged  on  duty 
with  tlie  exploration,  and  when  he  regarded  it  as  a  good 
country.  It  has,  unquestionably,  a  large  quantity  of 
jrood  arable  land,  and  it  is  on  the  railroad  line  to  Pu- 
get's  sound.  From  the  Cascade  mountains  to  the  Sound, 
the  only  diffiouUy  in  the  way  of  farming  will  bu  the  im- 
mense forest  growth,  which  covers  nearly  two-thirds  of 
the  country. 

I  have  simply  presented  these  facts  to  show  the  cul- 
tivable character  of  the  country.  I  have  presented  the 
country  as  it  is  on  the  earth's  surface.  I  do  not  desire 
to  make  any  invidious  comparisons  with  other  routes.  1 
am  ready  to  admit  that  other  routes  are  equal  in  agricul- 
tural capacity.  I  wish  they  were,  for  it  is  my  opinion  that 
the  more  practicable  routes  we  have,  the  more  and  larger 
settlements  we  plant  on  them,  the  more  will  it  help  to 
unite  our  country,  and  make  us  the  first  Power  on  earth. 

There  is  another  consideration,  however,  which  I  shall 
advert  to,  lest  invidious  comparisons  should  be  drawn 
against  the  northern  route  in  favor  of  more  southern  routes. 
I  refer  to  the  present  capabilities  of  this  route — to  the  agen- 
cies now  at  work  to  facilitate  settlements,  the  organization 
of  a  mail  service,  and  the  building  of  the  railroad. 

On  this  route  there  are  already  considerable  establishments, 
not  simply  of  horses  and  cattle,  but  of  farms — not  merely  at 
Fort  Union,  and  Fort  Benton,  but  at  other  points,  where 


.  ^ 


\ 


t 


ilf) 


cattle  and  horses  arc  found  in  j^reat  numbers.  In  tlie  Flat- 
head country  there  are  many  farms  enclosed,  and,  although 
they  have  been  commenced  only  a  few  years,  tliere  Avill  be 
the  present  year  a  very  considerable  sur[)lus.  At  the  Jesuit 
mission  in  the  Flathead  country,  they  will  manufacture 
300  barrels  of  flour  more  than  they  will  consume,  nearly 
all  the  wheat  having  been  raised  by  the  lathers  and  bro- 
thers of  the  mission,  with  the  assistance  of  such  Indians  as 
*hey  could  get  to  work.  ThiF  flour  they  have  contracted 
to  furnish  to  the  forts  of  the  American  Fur  Company  on 
the  Missouri,  and  they  will  take  it  over  the  mountains  in 
wagons.  The  Indians  had  last  year  fifty  tfirms,  averaging 
five  acres  each,  under  cultivation.  There  are  in  this  region 
two  grist,  and  two  saw  mills. 

If  we  pass  over  the  Bitter  Eoot  mountains  to  tlic  Spokane, 
there  we  find  farms,  with  tlieir  fields,  and  horses,  and  cattle. 
In  the  Colville  valley,  there  is  now  a  continuous  settlement 
of  one  hundred  and  twenty  difierent  farms.  Tlie  Walla- 
Walla  valley  is  also  settled  to  a  considerable  extent. 

Another  thing  to  be  considered  in  regard  to  planting  set- 
tlements through  the  country  is  that  seeds,  farming  utensils, 
and  supplies  of  all  kinds,  both  for  settlers  and  for  trav- 
ellers, can  be  carried  by  steam  to  the  mouth  of  the  Pa- 
louse,  so  that  in  connection  with  the  running  of  steamers 
on  the  Missouri  to  Fort  Benton,  supplies  need  in  no 
instance  to  be  wagoned  more  than  two  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles,  which  statement  shows  how  well  prepaied 
we  are  for  any  operation,  which  either  the  government  or 
the  citizens  of  the  country,  may  think  proper  to  undertake. 
In  my  railroad  report  of  1854,  I  gave  a  scheme,  and  pre- 
sented a  programme  for  building  this  road,  which  proposed 
making  use  of  the  waters  of  the  Columbia  and  jMissouri, 
for  transporting  the  workmen,  and  tools,  and  materials  of 
all  kinds,  and  organizing  the  work  in  corresponding  divi- 
sions. One  would  be  from  Puget's  sound  and  from  Van- 
couver to  the  point  where  the  railroad   line  crosses  the 


'^^^ 


it  to  the  head  oi" 


ition 


(.'oliiinltiii,  anotlicr  from  this  point  to  tne  Meutl  oi  navigni 
iit  Fort  Ik'iiton,  a  third  from  Fort  Benton  to  Fort  Union, 
nnotlior  to  St.  Paul's,  and  the  western  end  of  Lake  Snpe- 


rud 

n 


Phns  tlic  route  can  he  thrown  intofonr  divisions,  on  each 
of  wliieli  you  can  work  from  hoth  ends,  so  that  oiglit  sec- 
tions may  be  worked  at  a  time,  affording  extraordinary 
facilities  to  hasten  the  construction  of  the  road.  The  most 
diiiicult  of  these  divisions,  the  one  between  the  Columbia 
and  Missouri,  could  be  attacked  almost  as  soon,  within  two 
or  three  months,  as  those  lying  on  the  Pacific  or  great 
lakes.  Now,  liere  arc  railroad  men,  and  they  know  what 
can  he  done.  Suppose  your  route  is  established,  a  com- 
pany Cornu'd,  and  ample  mejins  at  hand;  the  only  question 
for  consideration  will  be,  what  are  the  engineering  difficul- 
ties uu  the  route,  and  how  long,  if  they  are  vigorously  dealt 
with,  will  it  take  you  to  run  tiu»  iron  horse  from  Fort 
Benton  to  the  Columbia?  It  ii^  not  necessary  to  wait  till 
the  tunnelling  is  done  on  the  route,  as  you  can  adopt,  for 
the  nonce,  the  system  of  zigzags,  l)y  which  the  AUeghanies 
are  scaled  in  Pennsylvania. 

I  am  sati.siied  that  our  railroad  men  would  not  leel  com- 
plimented, if  they  were  told  they  could  not  build  such  a 
road  in  four  years  after  the  location  was  made,  and  every- 
thing in  readiness  to  commence  the  work.  The  great  diffi- 
culty will  be  to  raise  the  money,  and  not  to  build  the  road 
when  the  money  is  raised.  Money  is  the  sinew  of  railroad 
l>rogress,  as  well  as  of  war.  But,  sir.  an  engineer  in  pre- 
senting his  programme  considers  simi)ly  the  engineering 
difficulties.  It  is  for  presidents,  and  directors,  and  compa- 
nies, to  raise  the  money. 

British  Columbia  is  attracting  the  attention  of  this  coun- 
try, and  of  Europe,  and  of  course  a  movement  will  be  made 
to  roach  that  country  by  great  lines  north  of  our  parallel. 
I  have  been  thankful  for  this  for  two  reasons:  One,  that 
it  r<'d(uinis  the  northern  route  from  the  reproach  of  being 


" 


37 

the  Siberian  trail,  and  makes  it  a  central  route  with  regard 
to  the  water  line  of  the  great  lakes;  and  also,  because  I 
think  the  occupation  of  that  country  to  the  north  of  us,  will 
cause  our  ])rogresH  to  be  accelerated.  I  desire,  from  reliable 
statistics,  to  give  some  data  IVom  wiiich  to  draw  compari- 
sons between  our  nortliern  route  and  the  routes  still  further 
north.  Before  doing  this,  however,  I  wish  to  state  in  the 
most  explicit  manner,  that  in  my  judgment,  there  is  a  vast 
gold  region  in  the  northwest  portion  of  our  continent. 
Gold  is  not  found  simply  in  British  Columbia,  but  for  a 
long  distance  south  of  our  parallel,  and  extensive  and  re- 
munerative diggings  have  been  discovered  in  Washington 
Territory.  The  gold  regions  of  Washington  extend  through 
the  Cascade  mountains,  nortli  of  the  Columbia,  and  thence 
eastward  along  Clark's  fork  and  the  Kootenay  river,  to 
near  the  llocky  mountains.  Geologists  have  passed  over 
the  ground,  and  confirm  the  rejmrts  of  the  miners,  as  to  the 
presence  of  gold  throughout  tliis  vast  region.  We  have 
the  evidence  of  officers  of  the  army  and  Indian  service,  and 
of  reliable  citizens,  as  to  paying  localities.  In  1855,  rich 
paying  deposits  were  actually  worked  on  Clark's  fork,  on 
the  tributaries  fiov/ing  into  the  Columbia,  from  both  its 
eastern  and  western  shores.  In  1855,  a  great  movement 
from  Oregon  and  Washington  was  directed  to  those  mines. 
A  thousand  men  were  on  the  road,  when  the  Indian  war 
broke  out,  and  prevented  their  generally  reaching  the 
mines;  but  through  the  labors  of  the  few  who  got  to  and 
worked  the  mines  in  1855,  we  became  possessed  ot  the  in- 
formation. It  is  due  to  American  citizens,  that  America 
and  Great  Britain  became  possessed  of  reliable  information 
as  to  the  gold  of  British  Columbia.  Had  our  Indian  war 
been  brought  to  a  close  in  1856,  as  it  would  have  been, 
if  the  same  uncompromising  and  stern  measures  had  been 
taken  as  were  taken  last  summer,  the  wealth  of  Wash- 
ington, its  gold,  its  platina,  and  lead,  and  silver,  and  cop- 
per, and  quicksilver,  would  have  been  known  to  the  world. 


S8 


i\ 


I  I 


I'  ;. 

.'II 

•.■I' 


,..,, 


ii!.:> 


If  you  will  read  the  most  interesting  narrative  of  Dr.  Per- 
kins, who  came  near  losing-  his  life  amongst  tlie  Indians, 
and  who  prospected  on  Clark's  fork  last  July  and  August, 
you  will  see  Avhy  our  people  have  not  hitherto  been  able  to 
work  the  mines,  ricli  though  they  be. 

The  reverend  Fatlier  De  Hmet,  who  went  through  Oregon 
as  a  missionary  of  the  Christian  faith,  who  is  reverenced  by 
Indians  and  by  the  white  man,  has,  in  his  book,  shown 
how  rich  tlic  countrv  is  in  mineral  weaLth.  In  conversa- 
tion  with  his  friends,  he  has  dwelt  particularly  on  the  rich- 
ness of  its  mines  in  gold.  You  are  familiar  with  the  char- 
acter, experience,  and  great  attainments  of  these  Jesuit 
fathers,  and  know  that  reliance  can  be  placed  on  their 
statements,  in  reference  to  tlie  capabilities  and  resources  of  a 
country,  which  they  have  examined. 

Therefore,  in  making  the  comparison  between  the  north- 
ern route  and  others  still  further  north,  looking  to  the 
gold  region,  I  wish  you  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  northern 
line  leads  you  directly  to  it,  as  well  as  the  lines  north  of  the 
49th  parallel. 

The  distance  from  St.  Paul's,  via  tlie  northern  route,  to 
Colville,  is  1,572  miles;  and  thence  to  thcforls  of  Frazer's 
and  Thompson's  rivers  is  290  miles  more,  making  1,862 
altogether. 

In  regard  to  the  land  route  to  the  Saskatcliawan,  from 
St.  Paul's  via  Fort  Garry,  Fort  Edmonton,  and  Ihc  Koo- 
tenay  pass  to  Colville,  we  have  the  narrative  of  Sir  Geo. 
Simpson,  Avho  gives  a  graphic  account  of  the  country  and 
the  estimated  distances.  He  cstinvites  the  distance  from 
Fort  Garry  to  Colville  to  be  nearly  2,000  miles,  but  his 
own  more  specific  statement  of  time  and  rates  of  travellinir 
per  day,  .n.xkes  it  about  1,800  miles.  The  distance  from 
St.  Paul's  to  Fort  Garry,  is  given  in  a  recent  report  of  sur- 
veys of  the  Red  River  country,  made  under  the  autl-ority  of 
the  Canadian  government,  at  558  miles;  from  Fort  Garry 
to  Edmonton  1,00{>  miles;  and  from  Edmonton  to  Colville 


i 


:!9 


800  miles;  niukini;'  a  total  of  2, ;};■)«  inilcs,  uguinst  l,')!'!  by 


:ther: 


' 


route,  to  Colville.  8ir  George  Simpson,  how- 
ever, made  Edmonton  a  point  of  his  route,  in  consequence 
of  its  being  one  of  tlie  great  trading  posts,  that  he  desired 
to  visit.  A  land  route  can  unquestionably  be  laid  two 
hundred  miles  shorter,  by  the  south  branch  of  the  Saskatch- 
awan.  To  bo  within  limits,  we  wdll  allow  300  miles  for  the 
Edmonton  detour,  which  will  give  2,058  miles  by  the 
Kootenay  pass,  against  1,5-72  miles  by  the  northern  route. 
If  your  object,  however^  is  to  reach  the  waters  of  Thomp- 
son's or  Frazer's  river,  then  you  must  make  Fort  Edmon- 
ton a  point  in  your  journey. 

The  route  then  is  to  the  Athabasca  river,  100  miles  by 
land,  then  up  this  river  150  miles,  which  you  can  ascend 
in  boats;  but  it  wnll  probably,  to  avoid  transhipment,  be 
better  to  go  by  land;  thence  across  the  mountains  by  the 
Athabasca  portage  1 00  miles  to  the  boat  encampment  on 
the  main  Columbia — in  all  350  miles  from  Edmonton. 
From  the  boat  encampment,  it  is  about  seventy-live  miles  to 
the  headwaters  of  Thompson's  river,  and  one  hundred  and 
twenty-five  miles  to  the  headwaters  of  Frazer's  river  by 
the  canoe  tributary  of  the  Columbia. 

Thus,  from  St.  Paul's  to  the  headwaters  of  Thompson's 
river,  tlie  distance  v/ill  be  by  land  1,983  miles,  and  to  the 
lieadTvaters  of  Frazer's  river  2,033  miles.  But  your  are 
on  the  waters  of  rivers  unfit  for  navigation;  for,  from  care- 
ful examination  of  narratives,  I  find  tha'.  Thompson's  river 
is  never  used,  and  Frazer's  river  rarely. 

It  is  only  the  lower  portion  of  Frazer's  river  that  can  Ic 
used  for  a  distance  of  one  hundred  and  twenty  miles. 

From  the  head  of  Thompson's  river  to  its  junction  with 
Frazer's  river,  known  ?«  the  Forks,  the  distance  is  200 
miles,  and  from  the  headwaters  of  Frazer's  river  to  the 
same  point,  450  miles;  thus  making  the  entire  distance  to 
the  forks  of  Frazer's  and  Thompson's  rivers,  2,183  or  2,483 
miles,  according  as  you  follow  down  Thompson's  oi-  Fra- 
zer  s  river. 


Ill 


>  I 


Now  lot  u(s  exaiiiiiic  tliu  Kooteiuiy,  and  Atluibasca  piisscw, 
,'111(1  cornparo  tluMu  witli  tlie  jtasses  on  tlic  northern  route. 

On  the  passes  of  the  mountain  range,  in  the  vicinity  of 
the  Missouri,  no  snow  is  to  bo  seen,  exce])t  during  the  hite 
fall  and  winter  months.  In  several  of  the  passes,  snow 
does  not  fa.U  to  a  suflicient  depth  to  seriously  interfere  ^v  ith 
tlie  travelling  of  animals.  On  the  northern  Little  Jila'.sk- 
ioot  pass,  there  was  no  snow  in  the  latter  part  of  March, 
iS,")4.  Tiic  height  of  the  Divides  of  Cadot's  and  the  north- 
ern Little  JUackfoot  pass  is  but  about  0,000  feet  above  the 
sea.  From  Fort  Benton  by  Cadot's  pass  to  the  Pacific,  but 
six  miles  of  the  country  is  5,000  or  more  feet  above  the  sea, 
and  but  fifty-one  miles  is  between  4,000  and  5.000  feet. 
Pack-animals  can  cross  all  tlieso  jiasses  and  tlirough  the 
mountains,  making  fifty  miles  per  day,  and  expresses  one 
hundre<i  miles  per  day.  1  have  myself  made  the  I'ormev- 
rate,  and  my  express  men  the  lattei-. 

Now,  Sir  George  Simpson  states  that  the  Kootenay 
pass  is  irom  7,000  to  8,000  leet  above  the  sea;  that  it  is  in 
the  ne-  'hborhood  of  towering  mountain  peaks;  that  a  large 
(piantity  of  snow  falls  upon  the  pass,  and  remains  there 
till  late  in  the  spring;  and  that  in  mid  .summer  he  found 
tlie  way  difficult,  in  consequence  of  morasses  and  boggy 
ground. 

As  regards  the  Athabasca  portage,  Pioss  Cox  estimates  its 
height  at  11,000  feet  above  the  sea,  witii  Mounts  Brown 
and  Hooker  in  the  immediate  vicinity,  14,000  feet  above 
ohe  sea.  The  pass  rises  up  about  3,000  leet  from  its  western 
base. 

Ross  Cox  made  the  ascent  in  lour  and  a  half  hours  in 
June,  where  he  found  a  wilderness  of  snow  eight  feet  deep, 
and  Franchere  found  five  feet  of  snow  on  the  16th  of  May, 
and  was  two  to  three  hours  making  the  ascent.  Alexander 
Ross  found  eight  feet  of  snow,  and  was  eight  hours  making 
the  ascent.  The  liiHcult  and  snowy  character  of  the  pass 
is  also  well  described  by  De  Smet,  and  the  narratives  of  De 


m 


-n 


./ 


Smet.  li(»ss  Cox,  iMoxundei'  R()ss.  ami  Franclici't*.  sul».staii- 
tially  agree. 

You  thus  see  that  the  route  to  the  forks  of  Frazer's  and 
Thompson's  rivers,  by  the  Athabasca  portage,  is  not  only 
a  much  longer  route  than  that  by  the  passes  of  the  forty- 
seventh  parallel,  and  Fort  Colville,  but  is  one  which  is  ob- 
structed by  snows  in  the  winter  and  spring  months. 

At  the  lieadwaters  of  the  Columbia,  and  the  Saskatcha- 
'.van,  the  mountains,  whose  crest.:!  were  bowed  down  to  the 
Missouri  and  Clark's  tributary  of  the  Columbia,  have  risen 
up  again,  presenting  almost  a  wall  to  the  transit  of  the 
emigrant  wagon  or  the  railroad  car.  I  do  not  call  in 
question  the  importance  of  these  routes  of  tiie  Saskatcha- 
wan  for  the  development  of  tlie  Saskatchawan  country  and 
British  Coiambia,  and  thev  mav  bo  good  routes  tor  emi- 
grants  from  the  lower  Red  river  colony.  With  the  exten- 
sion of  settlements  from  Canada  west  to  lied  river,  and 
thence  up  the  Saskatcliawan,  tlie  routes  must  be  opened, 
wliatever  difficulties  bo  in  the  way,  as  they  are  necessary 
to  the  development  of  the  country. 

Now  let  us  examine,  somewhat  as  a  practical  (question, 
these  great  water  lines  of  the  Missouri  and  the  Columbia. 
In  the  first  place,  our  lines  are  organized  and  inslinct  with 
life  and  steamers.  Fc-  twenty-five  years  steamers  have 
ascended  to  Fort  Union,  and  many  have  gone  up  to  points 
noJirly  half-way  to  Fort  Benton.  It  may  be  regarded  as  an 
o^'o-;.-,nized  line,  from  the  moment  facilities  for  passengers 
a:.:  i\  hand  at  Fort  Benton,  to  make  the  overland  trip  to  the 
Cciuji  .bia.  There  is  therefore  on  tliis  route,  but  450  miles 
of  land  transportation  between  waters  navigable  by  steam- 
ers. N'  v  steamers  have  never  run  on  the  Red  river  of  the 
north,  Lake  Winnipeg,  or  the  two  branches  of  the  Sas- 
katchawan, and  time  is  required  to  organize  the  service. 

There  is  at  the  mouth  of  the  Saskatchawan  a  great  rapid, 
which  will  require  a  portage.  The  accounts  are  conflicting 
whether  you  can  get  sufficient  deptli  of  water  on  the  two 


1.1; 


42 


branches  oi'  the  Saskatchawan,  and 


navigate 


them  with 


'■  h 


,!  I 


steamers,  when  the  river  is  unobstructed  by  ice.  Sir  Gleorge 
Simpson  speaks  of  having  gone  down  from  Edmonton  to 
Lake  Winnipeg  in  May,  in  a  perfectly  light  boat,  and  that 
he  was  frequently  obliged  to  get  out  of  the  boat  to  haul  it 
over  shoal  water.  He  stated  before  the  select  committee  of 
the  British  Parliament  that  the  longest  reach  of  navigable 
waters  was  fifty  or  sixty  miles,  and  that  to  make  continu- 
ous steamboat  navigation  on  either  branch,  it  would  he 
necessary  to  resort  to  canals  around  the  rapids. 

Alexander  Ross,  however,  went  down  the  northern 
branch  of  the  Saskatchawan,  making  no  portage  except  at 
the  great  rapids.  I  will,  for  the  purpose  of  this  com- 
parison, take  it  for  gra.  c^  ^^at  you  can  run  with  steamers 
to  Edmonton  during  the  .son  that  the  river  is  not  ob- 
structed by  ice,  but  here  is  a  great  point  of  difference. 
The  Missouri  river  is  open  for  more  than  seven  months  in 
the  year,  and  the  portion  of  the  river  from  Fort  Benton  to 
Fort  Union  is  open  nearly  eight  months. 

Go  Avestward  from  the  Mississippi  and  the  climate  be- 
comes milder,  and  the  coldest  portion  of  the  Missouii,  the 
portion  in  the  vicinity  of  Forts  Pierre,  Clark,  and  Randall, 
is  never  closed  exceeding  five  months.  This  cold  part  of 
the  river  opens  in  the  month  of  April,  whereas  by  referring 
to  the  journals  and  narratives  of  gentlemen  in  the  employ- 
ment of  the  Hudson's  Bay  Company,  you  find  that  Lake 
Winnipeg  is  sometimes  not  free  from  ice  till  June.  A 
through  connection  by  the  British  system  of  waters,  is  pre- 
vented by  ice  seven  months  in  the  year.  Thus,  the  Missouri 
is  a  navigable  line  for  seven  months,  and  Lake  Winnipeg 
and  the  Saskatchawan  for  only  five  months — a  fact  most  sig- 
nificant in  regard  to  the  facilities  of  the  two  lines  in  the 
matter  of  an  overland  emigration  and  transportation,  where 
the  distance  at  best  is  long,  and  where  an  additional  month 
or  two  in  the  length  of  the  season,  is  a  matter  of  great  con- 
sequence.    Tlie  f(tll(nving  table  will  give  in  detail  the  dis- 


L 


be 


•in 

taiicos  from  thoJSt.  Paul's  by  tlie  British  water  lines,  to  tlie 
head  of  Thompson's  and  Eraser's  rivers,  to  the  forks  of 
the  same,  and  to  the  mouth  of  Eraser's  river. 

St.  Paid,  via  BrecJcenridge,  lied  river,  Fort  Garry,  Lake 
Winnipeg,  the  northern  branch  0/  the  Saslmtchaivan, 
Edmonton,  and  Athahasca  portage,  to  headwaters  of 
Thomp^uji's  river,  of  Frazer's  river.  Forks  of  lliompson's 
and  Frazer's  rivers,  by  the  line  of  each  river,  and  mouth 
of  Frazer's  river  by  the  line  of  each  river. 

tSt.  Paul's  to  Breckenridge 210  by  land. 

Breckenridge  to  Fort  Garry 414by\vater. 

Fort  Garry  to  entrance  to  Lake  Winnipeg. . .  36         ** 
Entrance  of  Lake  Winnipeg  to  mouth  of 

Saskatchawan 260         " 

Mouth  of  Saskatchtiwan  to  Edmonton 900         ' ' 

Edmonton  to  Rocky  Mountain  House,  on 

the  Athabasca 100  by  land. 

Up  the  Athabasca 150bywater. 

Thence  to  Boat  Encampment 100  by  land. 

St.  Paul's  to  Boat  Encampment 2,170 

Thence  to  headwaters  of  Thompson's  river        75         " 
Or  thence  to  headwaters  of  Frazer's  river. . .      125         '  ' 
Thence  from  head  of  Thompson's  river  to 
forks  of  Thompson's  and  Frazer's  rivers, 

by  Thompson's  river  route 200         " 

Or  thence  from  head  of  Frazer's  river,  forks 
of  Thompson's   and   Frazer's  rivers,  by 

Frazer's  river  route 450         " 

And  thence  from  forks  to  mouth  of  Frazer's 

river,  12('  by  water,  50  by  land 170         '' 

Or  from  Boat  Encampment  to  Colville 450  by  water. 

Thus,  starting  from  St.  Paul's,  to  reach  the  head  of  Frazer's 
river,  you  have535  miles  of  land  carriage.  To  reach  the  forks 
of  Frazer's  and  Thompson's  rivers,  by  the  Frazer's  river 
route,  985  miles  of  land  carriage,  and  1,760  miles  water 


'•i^ 


I    !, 


li 


%,'\ 


I 

t 
I 

I    1 


14 

transportation.  To  reach  the  head  of  Tliompson  s  rivur,  you 
have  485  miles  of  hmd  carriage,  and  1,700  miles  of  water 
transportation;  and  to  reach  the  forks,  hy  the  Thompson's 
river  route,  085  miles  of  land  carriag-e,  and  1,700  miles  of 
water  transportation.  To  the  mouth  of  Frazer's  river,  hy  the 
route  of  Thompson's  river,  the  distance  hy  land  is  735 
miles,  and  by  water  1 ,880  miles;  and  hy  Frazer's  river  the 
distance  by  Ipnd,  is  1,035  miles,  and  by  Avater,  1,880  miles; 
or  on  these  same  water  lines,  to  reach  Colville,  the  distance 
down  the  main  Columbia  ironi  the  Boat  Encampment  to 
that  point  being  450  miles,  the  entire  distance  will  be,  by 
water  2,210  miles,  and  by  land  410  miles. 

Now,  to  reach  Colville,  or  the  forks  of  Frazcr's  river, 
from  Fort  Benton,  you  have  480  miles  of  land  transporta- 
tion in  the  one  case,  and  770  in  the  other. 

I  wish  now  to  make  some  comparison  of  the  line  of  the 
Missouri,  and  the  Columbia,  by  the  northern  passes,  and 
the  line  of  the  Missouri,  and  the  Columbia,  by  the  South 
})ass.  This  question  of  land  or  water  transportation,  is  one 
of  exceeding  consequence,  looking  to  the  interests  of  the 
poi)ulation  of  the  States  and  Territories  bordering  on  the 
Missouri  river. 

The  following  tables  gi/e  the  distances  by  the  northern 
route,  and  the  route  by  the  South  pass  to  Walla- Walla,  Van- 
couver, Colville,  Seattle  on  Puget's  sound,  and  forks  of 
Frazcr's  and  Thompson's  rivers: 

St.  LouiH  via  Missouri  and  pass  of  \^th  yarallGl  to  Van- 
couver, 

St.  Louis  to  Fort  Benton 2,415  miles  by  water. 

Fort  Benton  to  mouth  of  Palouse  . .  450     ''      by  land. 
Mouth  of  Palouse  to  old  Fort  Walla- 
Walla 81|  ''      by  water. 

Old  Fort  Walla-Walla  to  Vancouver  210     ''      by  water. 

or  which    450  miles  by  land  and 
2,700  by  water— in  all 3,150|  " 


ir, 

St.  Louis  via  /South pans  to  Vancouver. 

Distance  up  Missouri  to  St.  Joseph 480  by  water. 

f^'     Joseph,   by  South  pass,  to  ohl  Fort 

WaUa-Walla 1,755  by  Land. 

Old  Fort  WaUa- Walla  to  Vancouver 210  by  water. 

Giving  an  aggregate  of  C90  miles  by  water  and  1,755 
miles  by  land — in  all  2,445. 

St.  Louis  by  Northern  2^ciss  to  Oolvillc,  and  forks  of  Thomp- 
son's and  Frazers  rivers. 

St.  Louis  to  Fort  Benton 2,415  by  water. 

Fort  Benton  to  Colville 480  by  land. 

Thence  to  Forks 290       " 

Making  an  aggregate  of  2,895  miles  to  Colville,  and  3,285 

miles  to  forks  of  Thompson's  and  Frazcr's  rivers;  of  which 

only  480  miles  arc  by  land  to  the  first  point,  and  790  to 

the  second  point. 

St.  Louis  hij  South  ^>a6'6'  to  Colville,  and  forks  of  Thomp- 
son's and  Frazer's  rivers. 

St.  Louis  to  St.  Joseph 480  miles. 

St.  Joseph  to  New  Fort  Walla- Walla 1,730     " 

New  Fort  Walla- Walla  to  Colville 180     " 

Colville  to  forks  Thompson's  and  Frazer's 

rivers.  -^0^ 

or  480  miles  by  water,  and  2,200  by  land. 

St.  Louis  by  Northern  pass  to  Seattle. 

St.  Louis  to  Fort  Benton •..••  2,415  miles. 

Fort  Benton  to  Seattle • 720     '' 

St.  Louis  by  South  pass  to  Seattle. 

St.  Louis  to  St.  Joseph 480  miles. 

St.  Joseph  to  old  Fort  Walla- Walla 1,755      " 

Old  Fort  Walla-Walla  to  Seattle 240      '' 

or  480  miles  by  water,  and  1,999  by  land. 

But  it  is  practicable  to  follow  the  route  of  Clark's  fork  to 
Colville,  and  make  use  of  a  reach  of  its  navigable  waters. 


,^ 


I  I 


11  " 


'  'I 


'I  • 

'■I  ( 


46 

The  river  from  Horse  Plain  to  below  the  Peiid  d' Oreille 
lake,  is  navigable  by  boats  and  steamers. 

Recollect  that  here  we  have  those  rich  gold  mines  to 
which  I  have  referred. 

The  distances  from  Fort  Benton  to  Colville,  by  the  route 
of  Clark's  fork,  arc  as  follows: 
Fort  Benton  to  Horse  Plain,  by  cut- 
off from  Blackfoot  valley  to  the 

Jocko  tributary  of  Clark's  fork...  270|  mile«  by  land. 
Thence  down  Clark's  fork  to  old 

Pend  d' Oreille  mission 195      '*      by  water. 

Thence  by  land  to  Colville 60      ' *      by  land. 

or  330^  miles  by  land,  and  195  by  water. 

Steamers  drawing  from  twenty  to  twenty-four  inches  of 
water,  can  run  on  a  reach  of  eighty  miles  of  this  distance 
in  low  water,  and  a  much  longer  portion  of  it  in  high 
water.  There  are  two  short  portages  on  the  remaining 
portion  of  the  distance  at  low  water. 

I  hr  ,  e  probably  gone  into  this  (question  of  comparative 
distances  at  this  time  with  sufficient  detail. 

I  wish  now  to  make  a  few  remarks  as  to  the  practicability 
of  railroad  routes  north  of  the  49th  parallel. 

If  you  will  look  at  the  map,  you  will  see  that  Seattle  is 
the  easternmost  point,  of  all  the  harbors  of  that  system  of 
waters  in  American  and  British  territory  on  the  northwest, 
which  have  an  entrance  to  the  ocean  by  the  Straits  of  San 
Juan  de  Fuca;  that  north  of  Seattle  the  coast  tends  some- 
what rapidly  westward;  so  that,  assuming  either  St.  Paul's 
or  the  western  end  of  Lake  Superior  as  the  eastern  ter- 
minus, the  air-line  to  any  harbor  north  of  Seattle  will  be 
longer  than  an  air-line  to  Seattle.  It  is  obvious  also  from 
the  inspection  of  the  map,  that  to  reach  the  base  of  the 
llocky  mountains,  the  course  must  be  longer  than  to  reach 
the  base  of  the  mountain  by  the  route  of  the  forty-seventh 
parallel,  for  the  air-lines  are  longer,  and  it  is  not  possible, 
from  the  course  of  the  streams,  that  there  is  less  deflection 
from  a  straight  line.     The  very  first  link  from  St.  Paul's  to 


I 


17 

J'embina  gives  a  greater  northern  dellection  Ironi  1  he  course 
tlian  any  by  the  northern  route. 

The  air-line  distances  from  the  base  of  the  mountains,  in 
the  neighborhood  of  the  Saskatchawan,  to  any  part  of 
British  Columbia,  will  be  longer  than  those  from  the  base 
of  the  Kocky  mountains,  in  the  forty-seventh  and  forty- 
eighth  parallels,  to  Seattle. 

The  following  table  gives  the  air-line  distances  from  Su- 
perior City  and  St.  Paul's  to  Seattle,  on  Puget's  sound,  Van- 
couver, on  the  Columbia  river.  Fort  Benton  and  Pembina ; 
from  Fort  Benton,  to  Seattle  and  Vancouver;  from  Edmonton 
to  Pembina,  and  the  mouths  of  Frazer's  and  Salmon  rivers, 
in  British  Columbia.  Salmon  river  was  struck  by  Sir 
Alexander  McKensie,  in  his  trip  to  the  Pacific,  in  1793: 


' 

Seattle. 

Van- 
couver. 

Fort 
Benton. 

Pembina. 

Mo.  of 
Fruzer R. 

Mo.  of 
Salmon  R. 

Superior  City. 

St.  Paul's 

Fort  Benton.. 
Edmonton .... 

1,412 

1,403 

545 

1,455 

1,435 

592 

867 
859 

276 
339 

767 

540 
1,176 

646 

Pembina 

1,377 

From  which  we  deduce  the  following  facts:  The  air-line 
distance  from  Superior  City  to  Fort  Benton,  is  867  miles, 
against  1,043  miles  from  Superior  City,  via  Pembina,  to 
Edmonton  ;  from  St.  Paul  to  Fort  Benton  859  miles,  against 
1,106  from  St.  Paul,  via  Pembina,  to  Edmonton;  and  that 
the  air-line  distances  from  Fort  Benton,  to  Seattle  and  Van- 
couver are  respectively  545  and  592,  against  540  and  646 — 
the  air-line  distances  from  Edmonton  to  the  mouths  of 
Frazer's,  and  Salmon  rivers.  The  air-line  distances  from 
Superior  City  and  St.  Paul's,  via  Fort  Btnton,  to  Seattle,  are 
1,412  and  1,404  miles,  against  1,646  and  1,752  miles — the 
air-line  distances  from  St.  Paul's,  via  Pembina  and  Edmon- 
ton, to  the  mouths  of  Frazer's  and  Salmon  rivers,  and  against 


!i  (! 


'  \' :,  . 


I 


48 

1,58:5,  ami  1,1181)  miles,  llu'  tiir-iiiic  diHljiiu'cs  Iroiii  Si^tcrioi' 
City,  via  Pembina  and  l'](lm(»nton,tot]io  inoutlis  oi'Krazer's, 
and  Salmon  rivers. 

Thus,  tlie  air-lino  distances  from  >St.  Panl's  and  Superior 
City  to  the  Pacific,  arc  from  171  to  348  miles  shorter  by 
the  route  of  the  47th  paiallel,  tlian  by  the  routes  through 
P>ritis]i  Columbia  and  the  Saskatchawan. 

Consider  the  course  of  the  rivers  on  the  route  of  the 
forty-seventh  and  forty-eighth  parallels.  Look  at  the 
Missouri  and  Clark's  fork,  look  at  the  general  course  of  the 
Spokane,  Bitter  Root,  and  St.  Regis  de  Borgia  rivers,  and 
see  how,  by  careful  ex})loration,  a  nearly  due  cast  and  west 
connection  has  been  made,  between  the  Flathead  (;ountry 
and  the  great  plain  of  the  Columbia.  This  interior  plain 
enables  us  to  lay  a  co^'\.  .ratively  straight  line  across  it, 
from  the  mountain  region  of  tlie  Bitter  Koot,  to  tlie  Cascade 
mountains.  Can  it  be  so  in  British  Columbia?  Tlio 
streams  run  nearly  north  and  south,  and  are  separated  by 
high  mountain  spurs.  If  use  is  made  of  the  Kootenay 
pass,  then  the  route  must  either  go  south  of  the  4yth 
parallel,  or  it  must  cross  the  dividing  ridge  between  the 
Kootenay  and  the  main  Columbia,  giving  one  mor<j  chain 
to  cross  than  the  route  by  the  Athabasca  portage. 

It  is  not  possible  that  a  course  can  bo  laid  across  the 
streams  and  dividing  ridges  from  the  base  of  the  moun- 
tain passes  north  of  the  49th  parallel,  which,  starting  from 
Lake  Superior  and  St.  Paul's,  will  not  be  several  hundred 
miles  longer  than  the  nortliern  route.  These  are  obvious 
and  natural  inferences,  drawn  from  what  we  know  of  the 
geography  of  the  country.  We  cannot  speak  positirely  as 
to  what  paFi  the  British  route  will  cross.  I  und(rstand 
that  Col.  1  aliser,  in  the  service  of  the  British  govern- 
ment, crossed  the  Kootenay  pass  the  last  summer  on  his 
way  to  the  Pacific,  charged  with  an  exploration  of  the 
country. 

The  following  table  gives  the  sailing  distances  from  the 


4 


4« 


piincipul  povls  t>r  Ahju  It)  tlh»sc  ot'diir  wcslmi  roast;  IVuni 
which  it  will  bo  fieen,  that  Seattle's  Jivcu'iige  distance  from 
the  ports  of  Asia  is  twenty-five  miles  less  than  Vancouver's, 
sixty-three  miles  less  than  San  Francisco,  368  miles  less 
than  San  Diego,  and  sixty-five  miles  less  than  Mazatlan. 
As  regards  the  four  ports,  tlie  mouth  of  the  Amoor,  Shang- 
hae,  Canton,  and  Calcutta,  the  average  (listan(;eH  are  re- 
spectively 54,  206,  532,  1,212  miles  h-ss  tlian  to  the 
other  ports. 


"[■ 


I 

o 


From  Amoor 

From  Shanghae... 

From  Canton 

From  Calcutta 

From  Melbourne.. 
From  Sandwich  Is 

Average  distances. 


3,850 
5,140 
5,900 
8,730 
7,280 
2,380 


5,542 


2  •>. 


cv 

lb 


y.  ;: 


I       H 


3,895 
5,215 
5,975 
8,805 
7,205 
2,305 


4,110 
5,430 
6,140 
8,970 
6,930 
2,050 


5,567 


5.605 


4,520 
5,830 
6.550 
9,380 
6,990 
2,190 


5.390 
6,700 
7,380 
10,210 
7,125 
2,835 


5,910        6,607 


If  we  look  to  European  connections,  the  following  table 
gives  the  distances  from  Liverpool,  Havre,  and  Bremen,  to 
Halifax,  St.  John's,  Portland,  Boston,  and  New  York: 


To 
Halifax. 

To  St. 
.John's. 

To  Port- 
land. 

To        To  New 
Boston.      York. 

From  Liverpool 

' '     Havre 

2,430 
2,540 

3,080 

1,960 
2,070 
2,610 

2,750 
2,860 
3,400 

2,800 
2,910 
3,450 

2,970 
3,080 

''     Bremen 

3,620 

There  is  a  scheme  on  foot  of  a  railroad  communication 
from  both  Halifax  and  St.  John's  to  Quebec.     The  distance 

7 


Hi 


4 


') 

li.l 


•111 

11 

!!•'■ 


5(1 

I'roiu  Uiililiix  lo  (^hu'lu'c  will  lie  iVMS  miles,  uiid  iVoru  JMoii- 
treal  801)  miles,  and  from  St.  John's  to  Quebec  about  the 
same  distance;  making  llie  entire  di.stancc^  by  railroad,  from 
Western  connections,  511  miles  shorter  to  Porthind  tlian 
to  Halit'ax  and  St.  .Fohn's.  Tbis  great  increase  of  distance 
cannot  compensate  for  the  less  ocean  distance  from  the  two 
British  posts.  Wc  thus  stand  in  this  strong  position;  the 
great  water-line  of  the  lakes,  and  its  system  of  canals  and 
rivers,  has  the  shortest  railroad  connections  with  American 
ports,  both  on  the  Pacific  and  Atlantic  coasts;  making  Tu- 
get's  Sound  the  great  port  for  all  seasons  of  the  year,  and 
Portland  the  winter  port  of  the  Canadas,  and  the  depot  for 
the  business  wliicli  will  pass  over  the  rail  at  all  seasons  of 
the  year. 

Mr.  President,  I  did  not  suppose,  when  I  entered  upon 
tbis  subject,  that  I  shouM  occupy  so  mucli  time.  There 
are  otlier  subjects  tluit  I  desire  much  to  dwell  upon,  in 
regard  to  which  1  have  made  a  most  careful  examination. 
Since  1  accepted  the  invitation  of  your  committee  to  address 
your  society  on  the  subject  of  the  Northwest,  I  have  en- 
deavored to  exhaust  all  existing  information  respecting  the 
climate  of  this  great  region  of  country. 

I  will  refer  for  a  single  moment  to  the  isothermal  lines 
laid  doAvn  upon  this  map. 

In  constructing  this  isothermal  map,  the  curves  have  not 
been  reduced  to  the  level  of  the  sea,  but  liave  been  laid  on 
the  natural  surface  of  the  ground.  They  have  been  de- 
duced from  the  observations  of  temperature  brought  down 
to  the  present  time.  This  method,  though  not  strictly 
correct,  w^ill  be  near  enough  for  practical  purposes.  The 
rolling  character  of  a  country  will  make  it  impossible  to 
arrive  at  perfect  accuracy  in  establishing  the  isothermal 
curves  of  the  natural  s  irface.  But  it  is  not  probable  that 
the  error  in  any  case  w  ill  exceed  one  degree. 

The  altitudes  of  important  points,  as  the  passes  of  the 
Rocky,  Bitter  Root,  Cascade,  and  Sierra  Nevada  mount- 


I 

■-i 


II- 
ho 
)in 
an 

■TICO 

wo 


51 

H...O,  iini)ortjuit  key  puirit.s,  sis  Fort  Uiiioi),  Fort  15«.'iitoii, 
Fort  Lurainic,  Salt  Lake,  Cantoiinu'iit  StovciiH,  of  tlio  lar<''o 
valleys  and  prairies,  are  laid  down. 

To  construct  the  isothermal  chart  reduced  to  tjie  level  of 
the  sea,  the  result  of  observations  at  a  given  ]ioint  are 
modified  hy  the  formula  that  every  one  tliousaiid  ieet  in 
altitude  is  equivalent  to  a  diflerence  of  threes  decrees  in 
temperature.  Thus  an  increase  of  tliree  degrees  for  every 
thousand  feet  of  altitude  will,  applied  to  the  several  ])oints 
named,  furnish  data  by  which  the  isothermal  curves  re- 
duced to  the  level  of  the  sea  can  be  constructed. 

Let  me  call  your  attention  to  the  remarkable  fact,  that 
as  you  go  westward  from  the  Mississippi  the  climate  rapidly 
becomes  milder;  that  though  the  Missouri  river  takes  a 
great  course  northward,  the  mean  winter  temperature  of 
Fort  Benton  is  ten  degrees  higher  than  Fort  Pierre,  though 
the  latter  is  more  than  1,000  feet  lower,  and  three  degrees 
further  south  than  the  former.  The  climate  of  the  western 
coast,  is  very  similar  to  that  of  the  western  coast  of  Eu- 
rope. 

Examine,  Mr.  President,  for  one  moment,  that  country 
stretching  from  Wisconsin  through  Minnesota  to  the  Red 
river  of  the  North,  through  which  American,  and  English, 
and  Canadian  captalists  are  now  projecting  great  lines  of 
railroad  communication  to  reach  British  Columbia.  And 
unless  the  Congress  of  the  United  States  can  cease  its  discus- 
sions, andventure  upon  action,  even  our  people  in  the  North- 
west will,  in  self-defence,  have  to  join  hands  with  the  Catia- 
das,  tnat  they  may  have  a  passage  to  the  Pacific,  even 
though  it  be  on  British  soil,  and  cause  to  grow  up  a  great 
commercial  and  controlling  British  port  on  the  west- 
ern coast.  These  facts  are  full  of  significance.  They  should 
dissipate  doubts,  and  impress  us  with  the  importance  of 
rising  up  to  the  height  of  this  great  argument,  and  witli 
faith  and  steadiness  enter  upon,  and  accomplish  the  woik 
of  binding  together  the  shores  of  our  great  oceans. 


i^^ijtj 


I  I 


VH! 


ii;:' 


A  P  P  E  i\  T)  1 X . 


Ill 


'If' 


The  ibllowing  tiihh'  gives  the  lines  in  detail,  and  on  sev- 
rial  routes,  as  re<^ai'ls  some  of  the  most  importants  ports. 
Tlic  least  distance  has  been  in  each  case  taken. 

SIIOUTKST  TJJAVKLLED  ROUTES. 
RAILWAY    ROUTES. 

PortUuid,  JIc,  to  St.  FauVs,  Jllnnesota. 

Grand  Trunk  Railroad- -Portland  to  Montreal..   292  miles. 

Montreal  to  Toronto...  333 

*Toronto  to  Sarnia 180 

Detroit  and   Mihvuukio  llailroad — *Sarnia   to 

Grand  Haven 280 

Grand  Haven  steamers — Grand  Haven  to  Mil- 

waukie 75 

La  Crosse  and  Milwaukie  liailroad — *Milwaukie 

to  St.  Paul's 325 

1,485 

Pitriland  to  St.  Louis. 

Portland  to  Montreal 292 

Montreal  to  Torontc 333 

Toronto  to  Hamiltoi' 38 

Hamilton  to  Windsor 186 

Detroit  to  Lake  Station 260 

Lake  Station  to  Joliet 45 

Jolict  to  St.  Louis \ 245 

St.  Louis  to  Portland 1,399 

'•Unfinished 


53 

Neto  York  to  St.  Faults,  via 
Hiidsuii  liiver  llailruad — New  York  to  Albany..  144  inilus. 

New  York  Central — Albany  to  N.  Falls o05 

Great  Western  Canal — N.  Falls  to  Detroit  or 

Windsor 221) 

iliciiigan  Central — Detroit  to  Chicago 284 

Chicago,  8t.  Paul's  and  F.  D.  L.  Railroad — 

♦Chicago  to  St.  Paul's 400 

1,302 

Boa  ton  to  St.  Louis,  via  Chicago. 
As  above — Boston  to  Chicago 1,018 

C/hicago  and  8t.  Louis — Chicago  to  St.  Louis..      256 

1,204 

New  York  to  St.  Louis,  as  above 1,208 

Boston  to  St.  Paul's. 
Western  Railway — Boston  to  Albany 200 

As  above — Albans  to  St.  Paul's 1,218 

1,488 

Philadelphia  to  St.  PauVs,  via 
Pennsylvania   Central — Philadelphia  to  Pitts- 
burg   353 

Pittsburg,  Fort  Wayne  and  Chicago — Pittsburg 

to  Chicago 471 

Chicago,  St.  Paul's  and  F.  D.  L. — *Chicago  to 

St.  Paul's 400 

1,224 

Baltimore  to  St.  Paul's,  via 
Northern  Central — Baltimore  to  Harrisburg, . .     84 
Pennsylvania  Central — Harrisburg  to  Pittsburg.  247 

As  above— Pittsburg  to  St.  Paul's 871 

1,202 

Washington  to  St.  Paul's,  via 

Baltimore  &  Ohio— Washington  to  Baltimore.        38 

Baltimore  to  St.  Paul's...  1,202 

1,240 


f 


;'    I 


,1 


i! 


li  ' 


Hi'. 


51 

Philadelphia  to  Chicago,  as  above 824  miles. 

Baltimore  to  Chicago  ' '       802 

Washington  to  Chicago       •'       840 

Charleston  to  St.  Louis,  via 

South  Carolina  Kailroacl  and  C. — Charleston  to 

Chattanooga 446 

M- nphis  and  Charleston — Chattanooga  to  Cor- 
inth   217 

Mobile  and  Ohio — *Corinth  to  Cairo 175 

Illinois  Central — Cairo  to  Sandoval 114 

Ohio  and  Mississippi — Sandoval  to  St.  Louis...  61 

1,013 

Charleston  to  St.  Paid's,  via 

As  above — Charleston  to  Cairo 838 

Illinois  Central-    Cairo  to  Dunlieth 45 1 

Mississippi  River — Dunlieth  to  St.  Paul's 275 

1,564 

Neiv  York  to  St.  Louis  via  Dunkirk  and  Indianapolis. 

New  York  and   Erie  Railroad — New  York  to 
Dunkirk 469 

Lake  Shore — Dunkirk  to  Cleveland 143 

Cleveland,  Columbus  and  Cincinnati — Cleveland 
Crest  li ne 67 

Indiana  and  Bellefontaine — Crest  line  to  In- 
dianapolis      206 

Terre  Haute  and  Richmond — Indianapolis  to 
Terre  Haute 73 

Terre  Haute  and  St.  Louis — Terre  Haute  to  St. 
Louis 183 

1,141 

Neio  York  to  St.  Louis  via  Philadelphia. 

New  Jersey  Railroad  and  Transportation  Com- 
pany—New York  to  Philadelphia 93 

Pennsylvania  Central— Philadelphia  to  Pitts- 
'"•i"g 353 


.>i) 


Olevelaiul  and  Fittsburji; — rittshiiri''  1«»  \V heel- 


er 


ing 03  miles. 

Central  Ohio — Wheeling  to  Colunbiis 141 

Columbus  and  Xenia — Columbus  toXenia....     55 

Indiana  Central — Xenia  to  Indianapolis 124 

As  above — Indianapolis  to  St.  Louis 256 

1,115 

Fhiladelphia  to  St.  Louis,  as  above 1 ,022 

New  York  to  St.  Louis  via  Baltimore  and  Ohio,  Marietta 
and  Cincinnati,  and  Ohio  and  Mississii)pi  llailroad. 

As  above — New  York  to  Philadelphia 1)3 

Philadelphia,   Wilmington   and    Baltimore — 

Philadelphia  to  Baltimore 98 

Baltimore  and  Ohio — Baltimore  to  Marietta...    383 
Ohio  and  Mississippi — Cineinnati  to  St.  Louis.    340 

1,114 

Baltimore  to  St.  Louis,  as  above 923 

Washington  ''         "  943 


Savannah  to  St.  Louis,  via 
Georgia  Railroad — Savannah  to  Chattanooga..    431 
As  above — Chattanooga  to  St.  Louis 567 


998 


Savannah  to  St.  Paul's,  as  before 

Savannah  to  Chicago      "         

Charleston  to  Chicago     ''         


,.  1,549 
,.  1,178 
,.    1,193 


3fohile  to  Chicago,  via 

Mobile  and  Ohio— *Mobile  to  Cairo 540 

Cairo  to  Chicago 355 


89f 


o 


Mobile  to  St.  Louis,  as  before 715 

BTobile  to  St.  Paul,  via 

Mobile  and  Ohio— *Mobile  to  Cairo 540 

Illinois  Central — Cairo  to  Dunlieth 451 

Mississippi  river — Dunlieth  to  St.  Paul's 275 


1,266 


I 


') 


or. 

New  Orleans  to  St.  Louis,  via 
N.  0.  1.  and  (I.  N.  Miss.  C.  and  M.  0.  R.  R.  - 

*New  Orleans  to  Cairo 625  miles. 

As  above — Cairo  to  St.  Louis l75 

800 

New  Orleans  to  Chicago,  as  above 980 

New  Orleans  to  St.  Paul's,  as  above 1,351 


.i., 


II 


3S. 


00 


